Pat Cummins will miss the second Ashes Test after he was deemed a close contact of a person who received a positive COVID-19 test last night.
He will now be required to isolate for seven days and will be unavailable to play in the second test match in Adelaide which starts on Thursday.
Steve Smith will captain the team in his absence for the first time since the Cape Town ball-tampering scandal in 2018.
Cummins said while he was "gutted" to miss the Test, he was excited that Michael Neser — who lost out to Jhye Richardson to replace Josh Hazlewood — will earn his Test debut.
"Gutted to miss this Test but really excited to see Neser finally get his chance in the baggy green," Cummins wrote on Twitter.
"He has done the hard yards and is a seriously skilful player.
"Super frustrating but COVID has thrown us all some curve balls over the last couple of years. Will be cheering along!"
Cricket Australia said Cummins was dining in a restaurant last night and did not breach any biosecurity protocols.
They confirmed he isolated as soon as he became aware of the situation and has since had a PCR test, which produced a negative result.
"We anticipate that he will be available to play in the third Vodafone men’s Ashes Test at the MCG in Melbourne," Cricket Australia said in a statement.
"Cummins is understandably very disappointed not to be able to captain Australia for the day-night Test in Adelaide.
Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon were dining at the same restaurant as Cummins but at a separate table outdoors. SA Health has deemed them casual contacts and they are free to play.
Players are also not in strict bubbles for the Adelaide Test and there is no suggestion Cummins has broken any protocols.
Cummins' absence along with that of Hazlewood will be a massive blow to Australia after the world's top-ranked Test bowler claimed a five-wicket haul in series-opening win at the Gabba.
Australia's Pat Cummins during game 1 of the mens ODI between Australia and New Zealand at the SCG in Sydney, Friday, March 13, 2020. Source: AAP
He has also taken 46 wickets at an average of 16.23 in day-night Tests, and was expected to reclaim the new ball for the pink-ball match.
Adelaide has had a rise in COVID-19 cases over the past week, with the 25 reported on Wednesday the most in a single day in more than 18 months.
