Chris Silverwood deemed as a close contact to a COVID-19 positive case; set to miss Sydney Test 

England head coach Chris Silverwood will miss the fourth Ashes Test in Sydney after being deemed a close contact with a positive COVID-19 case. He will be under isolation for a period of 10 days with a seventh member in the English camp testing positive for the virus.

Cricket England released a statement regarding Silverwood's situation, which read:

“Following the latest round of PCR tests administered to the England men’s touring party on 29 Wednesday December, one family member has tested positive. Our Men’s Head Coach Chris Silverwood will have to isolate for 10 days, along with his family, in Melbourne and will miss the fourth Ashes Test."

The virus had threatened play in the Boxing Day Test after four members of England's touring party contracted the virus. Two coaching staff and a family member returned positive test results in the latest round of testing. Graham Thorpe will take over coaching duties in the absence of Silverwood.

There has been a lot of heat directed at Silverwood following his side's humiliation at the hands of their closest rivals. Despite the commotion off the field, the coach is adamant over the fact that he still has the backing of the players.

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Silverwood is slated to be available for the final Test

England will undergo yet another round of testing later today. The teams are then scheduled to travel to Sydney via a charter plane. Cricket Australia chose to stick with the planned itinerary despite an alarming number of cases in the New South Wales area. The state government claimed that the fixture will be allowed to continue even if there is a COVID outbreak within the group.

Cricket Australia stated earlier that they had been prepared for such an outbreak even before the Ashes began.

After Sydney, the teams will travel to Blundstone Arena in Hobart, where they will play their last Ashes Test. Coach Silverwood should be eligible to guide the side in the pink ball encounter, which is scheduled to begin on January 14.