PNG pull out of Women's World Cup Qualifiers due to outbreak of COVID-19 cases in their camp

The PNG Women's Cricket Team have pulled out of the Women's World Cup Qualifiers due to an outbreak of COVID-19 cases in their camp.

All players and staff members of the team were in quarantine and were supposed to depart for Zimbabwe on November 6. They had undergone PCR tests ahead of their departure. However, several players in the squad returned with positive reports.

Thus, PNG didn't have enough players to send, which forced them to pull out of the upcoming Women's World Cup Qualifiers.

"We have also over the weekend worked with the ICC on later flight options to give the team more time to still be able to tour," said a Cricket PNG media release. "Unfortunately, all the extra efforts to get the team to travel have been unsuccessful."

PNG haven't played competitive cricket since the outbreak of COVID-19 across the globe. They were set to resume cricketing action, but COVID-19 dashed their hopes again.

"Unfortunately, despite everyone in Cricket PNG being fully vaccinated, COVID has robbed us of the opportunity to play international cricket once again," the release said. "The board, management, staff and players are all devastated at this turn of events. Months of hard work have gone into this tour, and to be robbed by COVID before we could leave is hard to accept.

"COVID is in the community in PNG and despite putting in best practices, including vaccinations and quarantining players seven days early, it wasn't enough on this occasion," the release added. "Our only comfort is that all the players and support staff who have tested positive, due to being vaccinated, have had only mild or no symptoms."

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Women's World Cup Qualifiers to commence on November 21

The 2021 edition of the ICC Women's World Cup Qualifiers will commence on November 21 in Harare.

Pakistan, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, the United States and Thailand have been drawn in Group A of the competition. Meanwhile, Papua New Guinea were pitted alongside the West Indies, Netherlands, Ireland and Sri Lanka.

However, with PNG having withdrawn from the Women's World Cup Qualifiers, the ICC will release a new schedule for the competition in due course of time.