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The ECB has announced that no professional cricket will be played in England and Wales until July 1 at the latest due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but has yet to confirm the postponement of the Hundred’s inaugural season.
The ECB board met on Thursday to confirm that the start date for the start of the season will be further delayed from May 28, which means England’s test series against the West Indies and ball games England’s white against India have been officially postponed. “Our plan is to reschedule international games as late in the season as possible to give the best playing opportunity,” said Chief Executive Tom Harrison.
While a decision on the Hundred has yet to be reached (an additional board meeting is scheduled for next Wednesday after a request to dedicate one more session to it), there is wide acceptance of the lack of foreign players, signs Questions about allowing fans to enter the motives and the collective will to “keep the lights on” make this an unfavorable time to launch a new and expensive tournament.
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There is still a willingness to play some form of red ball cricket this season, despite the loss of the first nine rounds of County Championship games. The ECB confirmed that the blocks for the red and white ball cricket will be included in a revised schedule, although it seems unlikely that the teams will be promoted or relegated this year: Players have previously questioned whether such a move would be fair in a truncated season. Some form of regional competition or a knockout tournament are two possibilities.
Any revised schedule will also see the T20 Blast pushed as late in the season as possible to maximize their chances of being organized and increase the likelihood that fans will be able to enter the grounds. The ECB has made it clear throughout the contingency planning process that it will prioritize the most financially important forms of gambling – the international and the Blast – to help secure the future of first-class counties and the CCM. It should be noted that the Hundred is no longer among those forms.
Competition for more than 50 women among eight new semi-professional regional development centers is still scheduled for the end of August, although the recruitment process for those centers has stalled and the ECB admitted two weeks ago that the tournament could be postponed. Recreational cricket remains suspended indefinitely.
“Our biggest challenge is how we could try to implement a bio-secure solution that offers optimal security for all concerned”
ECB CEO Tom Harrison
“Our role as a national governing body during a crisis of this scale requires that we carefully plan together with cricket stakeholders and supporters to try to overcome the impact of Covid-19 this season,” said Harrison. “As much as we hope to be able to offer some cricket this summer, we are in the midst of a global crisis and our priority, beyond professional sports, will be to protect vulnerable and key workers and society as all finished.
“So in a nutshell, there will be no cricket unless it is safe to play. Our schedule will only go forward if government guidance allows. Our biggest challenge, along with other sports, is how we might try to implement a bio-solution. safe offering optimal security for all concerned The guidance we get from Westminster [the UK government] It will help us shape how we deliver it.
“Our plan is to reschedule international games as late in the season as possible for the best chance to play. Vitality Blast will now also occupy the last possible season slot to offer as much time as possible to play a short county competition.
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“I want to thank everyone involved in this complex and sensitive work. Clearly there have never been times like this and my colleagues at the ECB and the entire game has been exemplary in this period. It has been refreshing, but not surprising, to see how has joined cricket. “
CWI has signaled its intentions to be flexible in rescheduling its three-test series, previously highlighting the possibility of playing it in July. Internal discussions at the ECB have raised the possibility of playing in “bio-secure” environments at the Emirates Old Trafford or Ageas Bowl, which have hotels on-site, or playing a limited series and a series of tests in parallel.
It remains possible for the West Indies series to be switched to the Caribbean and played in December, while the ECB will soon receive an offer from the Abu Dhabi Cricket to use its facilities to extend the summer.
