Joe Root-led England on verge of boycotting Ashes 2021 citing strict bio-bubble life: Reports

The last quarterof 2021 promises to provide plenty of cricketing action for the gentlemen's game's ardent lovers worldwide with IPL 2021, T20 World Cup and Ashes 2021 on cards. However, the fate of Ashes 2021 hangs in the balance as Joe Root & Co. could boycott this year's Ashes citing strict bio-bubble life Down Under.

According to ESPN Cricinfo, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) remain adamant and have not given much thought about postponement, which has not been received well by the senior players and support staff.

"The prospect of England fielding a significantly under-strength squad in the Ashes would appear to have grown following talks between the team and officials at the ECB," the website reported. "As a result, they are considering their options. One of those options is understood to be the entire team - including coaching and support staff - taking a collective decision to boycott the tour.

"While the players appear, in general, fairly sanguine about the prospect of a two-week quarantine for themselves, they are reluctant to put their families through it. And with some players away for the best part of four months (the IPL being followed by the T20 World Cup and the Ashes), they are understandably reluctant not to see their families for the entire period," it stated.

Strict quarantine rules Down Under

It also reported, "The nature of the quarantine is also understood to have disappointed the players. Although there has been talk of allowing them the use of a resort hotel on the Gold Coast, it is now understood they are likely to be permitted only two or three hours out of their hotel rooms each day for training.

"There is also a possibility the squad will be obliged to remain in some sort of 'bubble' throughout the tour to avoid difficulties in moving between states. Families, meanwhile, could still be required to undergo a 'hard' quarantine involving 14 days in a hotel room."

Even during India's tour of Australia last year, the bio-bubble life had taken a toll on the Indian cricketers and many had opened up about how tough it had become for them by the end of the tour.

Thus, it remains to be seen how the forthcoming Ashes 2021 will go ahead or will Root & Co. simply boycott the upcoming edition. For the unversed, Ashes 2019 had ended in a 2-2 scoreline, which provided enthralling contest between bat and ball throughout the English summer.