Tahlia McGrath plays amid Covid drama as Australia win Games cricket gold

Australia’s all-conquering women’s cricket team continued their dominance of the sport after edging out India in the Commonwealth Games final at Edgbaston, but not before Covid-19 has served up a dose of drama.

Meg Lanning’s side secured a nine-run win to claim the first Commonwealth gold awarded to women in a tight match in which India threatened to pull off a remarkable run chase right to the death.

The history-making victory came amid high drama though, with Australia confirming midway through their innings that all-rounder Tahlia McGrath had tested positive to Covid-19 on the morning of the match.

If the final had been held in Australia, McGrath would not have been able to play but the Commonwealth Games rules are more relaxed to match the laws of the host nation.

After checking with bodies including the International Cricket Council and the Commonwealth Games Foundation – resulting in a 12-minute delay to the toss – she was allowed to take her place, with precautions. Wearing a mask, she sat isolated from her teammates during the batting innings and in a surreal moment after taking a catch in the third over, she waved her teammates away as they ran to celebrate.

“We were all happy to play, she was happy to play,” fast bowler Megan Schutt said after the game. “She feels absolutely fine so I think the positive result was a bit of a shock to her, but that’s Covid isn’t it – we’re all going to live through it.”

When the final wicket was confirmed by the third umpire, McGrath went from standing outside the team huddle to jumping into it. And when she received her medal on the podium, she was, in stark contrast to her teammates, masked.

“We didn’t want to get in trouble, we felt bad for Tahlia at the end there,” Schutt