Melbourne: Australia captain Pat Cummins didn't know how to channelise his anger after a fellow diner turned out to be COVID positive, forcing him to miss the second Ashes Test in Adelaide.
Cummins had gone out for a dinner with his friend Harry Conway, who plays for BBL franchise Adelaide Strikersk, at a restuarant in Adelaide ahead of the second Test when a patron at the nearby table was identified as a Covid positive case.
"I (was) really angry - but I don't know who at," Cummins, who is back captaining the side at the Boxing Day Test, was quoted as saying by a media outlet.
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"There was no-one to blame. Once it became apparent, the state rules, you have to follow them."
Cummins had tested negative for RT-PCR but was asked to isolate accordingly to the COVID rules of South Australia, thus forcing his withdrawal on the morning of the Adelaide match.
"We knew it might pop at some stage in this series. I didn't think - or hope - it was going to be me," said the 28-year-old, who missed a home Test in about five years.
"You abide by the protocols, but there (was) hardly any COVID around, so I didn't factor it in at all until the bloke popped up next to me and said he's positive.
"No-one did anything wrong. The poor guy just flew to Adelaide to try and enjoy a couple of days of cricket - I felt really bad for him as well."