All Blacks captain Sam Whitelock has defended the decision to keep his side in New Zealand, but still hopes the Rugby Championship will go ahead.
Last week, the All Blacks' planned trip to Perth for the third and final Bledisloe Cup test against Australia was stalled, as New Zealand went into Alert Level 4 lockdown, after a COVID-19 community outbreak.
That decision wasn't received well across the Tasman, with Wallabies coach Dave Rennie accusing NZ Rugby and the All Blacks of only looking out for themselves, as opposed to the game as a whole.
Former All Blacks first-five Andrew Mehrtens described the move as "disappointing".
But appearing on Sky's Breakdown, skipper Whitelock has defended the decision, which put the future of the Rugby Championship into doubt.
Had the All Blacks travelled to Perth last Sunday, Western Australia's COVID-19 restrictions would have seen the team quarantined in the lead-up to the third Bledisloe test on August 28.
"I think it was a smart decision, because of the uncertainty of, not only Australia and New Zealand, but the two others, being Argentina and South Africa, and what that looks like for them to get into Australia."
Whitelock also hopes the Rugby Championship will go ahead, based entirely in Queensland, while the final Bledisloe test will still be played in Perth.
"I think it's going to go ahead and I really hope it does," he adds. "I'm very excited to play my part and play attractive rugby for the Rugby Championship.
"For us, as Kiwis, this is such a massive tournament for us, playing against all the guys down south. Having South Africa back in it this year will be awesome, we haven't had a look at them since playing round robin at the World Cup."
Confirmation over the future of the Rugby Championship is expected later on Tuesday.
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