Professional Cricket In England Suspended Until May 28

Updated - 21 Mar 2020, 12:43 PM

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Due to the impending dangers of the COVID-19 Coronavirus, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have announced that no form of professional cricket will be observed in England and Wales until 28th May at the earliest.

This step comes amid the outbreak of coronavirus that has gripped the whole world and has put a halt on all sporting events across the globe.

In a recent statement released by the ECB, they confirmed the news of the suspension, whilst also adding that they are looking at alternatives, to start the domestic cricket season by June, July or August.

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England Cricket team (Image Courtesy: ICC via Twitter)

As per the early estimates, the month of June will be their priority, as the board has a lot of matches lined up.

England is due to host the T20 Blast, there’a three-match Test series versus West Indies to look forward to, and the England women’s team will host India for a series as well.

The problem, however, is that the UK government’s latest assessment of Coronavirus Pandemic revealed that the peak of the pandemic will occur in the month of June.

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England board extends the suspension of professional cricket until 28th May:

Chief Executive Officer of the ECB, Tom Harrison in his statement revealed that the decision was taken keeping in mind the circumstances they face, at present.

“The decision to delay the start of the season has been essential, given the circumstances the nation faces,” said Harrison. “With the information available to us at the moment a delay to the start of the professional cricket season until May 28 was unavoidable.”

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Tom Harrison. Credit: Getty Images

“Securing the future of the game will be a primary focus as we plot a revised schedule with an emphasis on the most financially important forms of the game for the counties across international and domestic cricket,” he added.

If the season indeed resumes later in the summer, international cricket and the T20 Blast will be high on ECB’s agenda.

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