Starc ready as CA awaits UK updates

Australia's players could learn more about the plans for the limited-overs tour of the UK this Thursday as they continue to prepare for action without knowing if the series will go ahead.

Cricket Australia is yet to confirm the white-ball tour of the UK will proceed as it works closely with Australian Governments and the health authorities, while also seeking the required exemptions from both Federal and State Governments on getting the players out and back in to the country.

However, some clarity could come on Thursday in the scheduled teleconferences involving CA, team management, the players and support staff.

Fast bowler Mitchell Starc has been training the house down with his NSW state teammates, waiting for the tour to be given the green light and his travel itinerary delivered.

"It's still very much up in the air which is the way of the world at the moment," Starc told cricket.com.au. "It's changing day by day.

"We're having weekly meetings about the challenges of the tour and where this all sits.

"We've got another one on Thursday to see if there's any progressions on that.

"All the players are preparing to play and planning to go. It's now up to Cricket Australia and the government on both sides as to whether we jump on that plane.

"In terms of the cricket, we'll just get ready for the series."

One item CA is seeking clarity on is whether the Australian players will need to quarantine or self-isolate prior to departure.

The outbreak in Victoria has left captain Aaron Finch and allrounder Glenn Maxwell subject to Stage 4 lockdowns, while players in other states have been split into groups at training to avoid large gatherings.

Starc has been training under increasingly tighter restrictions at NSW and hopes his Victorian teammates will be on the flight to the UK should it be given the all clear for takeoff.

"It's a really tough time for a lot of people around the world and especially down in Melbourne with how it's tracking down there," Starc said.

"Hopefully people are doing the right thing and trying to stem the flow there.

"In terms of the cricket down there it's a lot more restricted than perhaps a lot of other states are and even now in NSW we're under very cautious restrictions and training in small groups and we're not allowed to cross-pollinate between groups.

"They'll be making sure they're doing all the right things and they're staying safe and if we jump on that plane, they'll be there with us."

Joining the players to the UK should the tour be confirmed would be coach Justin Langer, who hopes the series goes ahead for the "health of world cricket". 

"I think we have to go to England. There's lots of challenges, of course, but we have to find solutions to make sure that can happen if possible," Langer said last month.

"That's my view. I think for the health of world cricket.

"If things out of control happen and we can't end up going, at least we can say we've done everything in our power to make it happen."

Reassuring CA would be England's successful staging of the three-Test series against the West Indies, which was played in front of empty stands in bio-secure hubs in Southampton and Manchester. The first of three Tests against Pakistan, under the same restrictions, starts tomorrow at Old Trafford.

Should the tour go ahead, those English and Australian players involved in the Indian Premier League are set to fly directly to the UAE where the lucrative T20 tournament is being held.

However, Starc will not be one of them having opted out of playing in the competition this year to give his mind and body a rest after a taxing year and to spend time with his wife Alyssa and family.

While the coronavirus pandemic forced the IPL to be postponed and Starc to be at home for perhaps the longest stretch of his playing career, he says he has no regrets not putting his hat in the ring for the IPL this year and potentially forgoing the millions of dollars a player of his calibre commands.

"I know hindsight is a wonderful thing and now the IPL is on at a different time but no, I wouldn't change it," he said.

"I'm happy to spend that time when the blokes are at the IPL in September I'll be getting ready for a summer.

"The IPL will be around next year and if I feel the urge or people want me around I'll definitely consider it, but as of this year I'm very comfortable with the decisions I've made."