LONDON: West Indies head coach Phil Simmons returned to the field with his players on Thursday after his mandatory quarantine and COVID 19 tests.
He was part of the warm-up and pre-match preparations as West Indies continued their four-day warm-up match at Emirates Old Trafford.
“I want to assure West Indies cricket fans that Phil Simmons still has the full backing of Cricket West Indies no matter what has been said. When all is said and done, Phil’s job is not in any way threatened…he went through a very vigorous recruitment process nine months ago and was the best man we could have found for the job,” Cricket West Indies President Ricky Skerritt said in a statement.
Simmons said he was fully focused on preparing the team to beat England and retain the prestigious Wisden Trophy.
“It won’t disrupt us, it will just make us a little stronger going into the Test series. Our focus is still on the series,” he said.
“This has not been an easy time for my family. My wife was very close to her father and his passing has hurt us. There was no question of me not going to the funeral. My wife, my daughters and my son needed that support. I had to do what is right for my family, just as I will do what is right for CWI for the series,” added Simmons.
Simmons, was in short-term self-isolation after he recently attended the funeral of his father-in-law, who had passed away prior to the team’s recent assembly in Manchester.
Prior to the start of the tour Simmons had already sought and was given the necessary permissions from medical officials to leave the team’s base in Manchester.
The entire process of his exit and re-entry to the bio-secure location was approved and managed by the medical teams of the CWI and England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and strictly followed protocols set up prior to the tour which addressed such scenarios.
