Cricket boards will be in doldrums with their sporting events being called off due to the widespread novel coronavirus. Reports suggest, the BCCI might incur a Rs.10,000 crore loss, if Indian Premier League (IPL) is called off, which looks likely as of now. The lockdown all around the world to withstand the novel coronavirus might also be extended in due course.
To overcome the situation, former England captain turned cricket pundit Nasser Hussain, has suggested tips which might minimise the losses. His tips are specifically for the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), but if considered by other cricketing boards, it might also help them recover.
Prioritise the most popular and lucrative forms of the game: Nasser Hussain
Nasser Hussain thinks it will be important for the cricket boards to prioritise their most popular tournaments, to recover from the losses. He also said there is a need to chart out the calendar year with some common sense.
“If and when cricket does come back this year, it has to prioritise the most popular and lucrative forms of the game, whether that’s internationals, Twenty20 Blast or the Hundred, because the game is not well enough off to do anything else,” Nasser Hussain told Daily Mail.
“If that means the County Championship is put on the back burner, so be it. There will just need to be common sense decisions made to get as much cricket in as possible and to play as late as possible in the summer and even early autumn,” he added.
Cricketers will be worried about salaries: Nasser Hussain
Not just the boards, but also the cricketers, support staffs and sponsors will effected by the game coming to a standstill. Hussain, however, feels they are mature enough to deal with the situation and will come out on the other side better.
“This is going to hurt the coffers hugely — but hopefully we can all get through it and come out the other side without losing any counties. Cricketers will of course be worried about their salaries and whether they are included in the Government’s bail-out scheme but they are a pretty mature bunch,” Hussain said.