Ireland-UAE ODI postponed again despite no new COVID-19 cases

Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) and Cricket Ireland have agreed to suspend the match as UAE public health directives have not allowed "resumption of competitive action".

The One-Day International between UAE and Ireland which was scheduled to take place on Saturday has been postponed despite no new cases of COVID-19.

The One-Day International between UAE and Ireland which was scheduled to take place on Saturday has been postponed despite no new cases of COVID-19.

Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) and Cricket Ireland have agreed to suspend the match as UAE public health directives not allowing "resumption of competitive action".

"While the Emirates Cricket Board has encouragingly reported there are still no new cases of COVID-19 amongst its playing staff, UAE public health directives will still not permit a resumption of competitive action between UAE and Ireland at this stage. Both the ECB and Cricket Ireland have agreed to suspend Saturday's scheduled ODI, however hopes remain that a match may still be possible on Monday," Cricket Ireland said in a statement.

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ECB, in its statement, said: "Discussions are underway with all parties regarding a final ODI match between the UAE and Ireland being played early in the coming week."Richard Holdsworth, High-Performance Director for Cricket Ireland, said: "Frustratingly, the wait goes on to resume competitive action, however, we fully accept the rationale for the government health directive, and the health and safety of players and support staff will remain Cricket Ireland's top priority."

"With the Afghanistan series due to start next Thursday, the players and coaches are keen to get at least another competitive fixture in against the UAE prior to that, so we are hoping that a continued clean bill of health in both camps will allow us to play on Monday. The players will head out for a centre-wicket practice tomorrow," Holdsworth said.

"We share the frustrations of fans who were hoping to see a great series with our hosts, but we acknowledge the work of the Emirates Cricket Board in trying to recover what we can of the series given difficult circumstances. We will keep fans updated as circumstances evolve," Holdsworth added.

Earlier, the match was slated to take place on Thursday but it was postponed."Emirates Cricket Board confirms that tomorrow's match in the Abu Dhabi ODI Series 2021 against Ireland has been suspended. Although no new positive cases have been returned the decision, supported by Cricket Ireland, was made due to the UAE team remaining in quarantine as directed by authorities on January 11th.

As previously communicated discussions continue regarding rescheduling matches," ECB said on Wednesday.

Last week, the second ODI was postponed after Alishan Sharafu tested positive for coronavirus. He was the third member of the UAE squad to return a positive result, following Chirag Suri and Aryan Lakra.