Play 01:53 Buttler: Sport, in the grand scheme of things, has not been important for a while The return of international cricket came a step closer on Wednesday, as the UK government outlined its plans for a resumption of training as the nation comes to terms with its ‘new normal’. In the hope of both
England
3:06 PM IST England will consider handing international opportunities to fringe players and testing their fast-bowling depth to help them cope with a demanding revised summer schedule of behind-closed-doors cricket. The ECB have made extensive contingency plans in the hope of salvaging a home international season when it becomes safe to do so, with the
3:27 PM IST ESPNcricinfo staff Jofra Archer has suggested that crowd noises should be played over the public address system if England play international cricket behind closed doors this summer to compensate for the lack of spectators. England hope to return to some form of training before the end of the month, ahead of a
10:52 PM IST The ECB’s hopes of being able to stage international games behind closed doors appear to have been given encouragement by the new government strategy to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic. As part of its phased plans to build an economic recovery, the UK government has announced that it aims to allow some
3:03 PM IST ESPNcricinfo staff Alex Hales has claimed he has “matured as a player and away from the game” since his deselection from England’s World Cup squad after a failed recreational drugs test, and declared that the past six months have been “the best I’ve played in my career” as he presses his case
12:57 AM IST Richard Gould, Surrey’s chief executive, has cast further doubt on the ECB’s claim that the inaugural season of the Hundred would have proved profitable, had it not been postponed until 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Gould – whose county voted against the creation of the new competition when it was first
1:06 AM IST Durham and Edgbaston have emerged as further options as international venues for England this summer. At present Emirates Old Trafford (Manchester) and The Ageas Bowl (Southampton) are the favoured options as the ECB look into achieving something close to a bio-secure environment which would allow them to fulfil their international programme of
4:31 PM IST England’s Test players are preparing themselves for the potential of a “long stint” away from their families as part of plans to try and salvage planned series against West Indies and Pakistan this summer. Reports have suggested that the ECB is hoping to stage six Tests in bio-secure environments during July and
7:53 PM IST ESPNcricinfo staff England’s Physical Disability cricket squad is aiming to complete a marathon a day to help raise funds for the Lord’s Taverners. The squad, which finished as runners-up in the Physical Disability World Series last summer, has pledged to complete 26 miles of running every day for at least ten days,
11:06 PM IST Valkerie Baynes Women’s cricket risks being sidelined amid the clamour to schedule matches at the small number of bio-secure venues in England and Wales, should the sport get underway this summer in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. Clare Connor, the ECB’s managing director of women’s cricket, made the frank admission on
2:26 PM IST ESPNcricinfo staff Kumar Sangakkara will be invited to serve a second term as MCC president, in light of the current postponement of the club’s activities. Sangakkara, the first overseas president of MCC, took office on October 1 last year, and recently participated in a successful club tour of Pakistan, his first return
6:07 PM IST Tom Harrison has reiterated the ECB’s commitment to The Hundred despite facing accusations of gambling cricket’s future on the tournament’s success, but concedes that English cricket’s losses this summer could reach £380 million if the entire season is wiped out. Appearing in front of a panel of MPs as part of the
3:28 PM IST Colonel Tom Moore, a World War 2 veteran whose fundraising efforts during the coronavirus crisis have been lauded throughout the UK, has been presented with an England cap and invited to address the Test side to mark his 100th birthday. Colonel Moore captured the imagination of much of the nation when, weeks
10:30 PM IST England batsman Jason Roy has conceded that it might “make sense” to postpone this year’s men’s T20 World Cup, with the possibility of travel restrictions and biosecurity issues around the spread of the coronavirus set to have an impact on the viability of Australia hosting the tournament in October and November as
5:25 PM IST Tom Harrison has been called to appear in front of the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Committee of the House of Commons as part of an inquiry into the impact of Covid-19 on sport in the UK. Harrison, the ECB’s chief executive, will appear before Members of Parliament on
10:29 PM IST ESPNcricinfo staff Representatives from England and West Indies, including Test captains Joe Root and Jason Holder, have been involved in “positive ongoing discussions” about rescheduling their forthcoming series, the ECB has said. West Indies were due to arrive in the UK this month ahead of a three-Test tour, but that has now
11:02 PM IST Andrew Fidel Fernando England’s Test tour of Sri Lanka, which was interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic, will be rescheduled to January 2021. That is what SLC CEO Ashley de Silva has suggested anyway, though the ECB appears not to have made any firm arrangements yet. SLC is currently attempting to reschedule a
12:01 PM IST ESPNcricinfo staff Australia are back as the No.1 Test team in the world and also sit top of the T20I table for the first time following the ICC’s annual update of their rankings while world champions England stay No. 1 in ODIs. India had held the Test top spot since October 2016
8:05 PM IST The Hundred has officially been postponed following yesterday’s ECB board meeting. Ever since the severity of the Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting lockdown became apparent, it had looked highly unlikely that a new competition could be launched this year, with prospects of fans attending games minimal, travel bans limiting the availability of
6:33 PM IST The first season of the Hundred has been pushed back to 2021 following an ECB board meeting on Wednesday. The ECB had intended its new eight-team, 100-ball competition to be the showpiece event in the domestic cricketing calendar and to attract a “new audience” to the sport, with the tournament due to
4:56 PM IST Moeen Ali believes it is “better for the Hundred to be delayed” for a year than to launch the tournament without overseas players or fans. The ECB board meet today (April 29) to discuss whether to postpone the launch of the tournament in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. While the Hundred is
10:32 PM IST Moeen Ali has suggested the public health situation in the UK would have to “get drastically better” before players would consider a return to cricket. While Moeen accepted that both players and the wider public want a return to action as soon as possible, he believes it “would be very difficult to
6:10 PM IST ESPNcricinfo staff Dubai has emerged as the latest overseas venue that could host games to help salvage some cricket in the English season. Last week, ESPNcricinfo revealed that Abu Dhabi Cricket (ADC) was set to offer its facilities to the ECB for use between October and January, with all professional cricket in
5:14 PM IST The ECB should consider selling equity in Hundred teams to private investors to lessen the financial hit it faces from the coronavirus pandemic and to attract an Indian fanbase, according to a new report from a sports consultancy firm. The Hundred’s current model is similar to that used in the Big Bash,
11:42 AM GMT ESPNcricinfo staff With the ECB having confirmed the English season will now not begin until July 1 at the earliest, cricket’s options for the summer are beginning to narrow. Here we go through some of the key issues for the game, following a briefing by the ECB’s chief executive, Tom Harrison. Fate
5:27 PM GMT The ECB has been asked by the UK government to lead the way into investigating the viability of playing sport in a bio-secure environment. With an increasing acceptance that the best chance of fulfilling the broadcast deals that keep nearly all sport afloat is by playing fixtures behind closed doors, the Department
9:15 AM GMT The ECB has announced that no professional cricket will be played in England and Wales until July 1 at the earliest due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but is yet to confirm the postponement of the Hundred’s inaugural season. The ECB board met on Thursday to confirm the holding date for the start
6:06 PM GMT Abu Dhabi is set to emerge as a potential venue as attempts are made to salvage some cricket from a ravaged English season. ESPNcricinfo understands Abu Dhabi Cricket (ADC) is set to contact the ECB to offer its facilities for use between October and January. The offer could extend to both county
9:15 AM GMT The ECB board meets on Thursday to discuss options for the rest of the season. Here, we look at the likely outcomes… The Hundred The Hundred’s future is uncertain Getty Images It now looks almost certain that the Hundred’s launch will be pushed back 12 months. With budgets tight, the availability of overseas
4:59 PM GMT Chris Woakes says that England’s cricketers would be open to playing behind closed doors in a bid to get the international game back up and running after the Covid-19 outbreak, but concedes that his own focus would have to be on the Test and ODI squads over T20s if the plan to