Cricketers await the go-ahead

There was confusion as to whether the cricket season would be allowed to start following government announcements on Tuesday,

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said non-contact sport can be played, so long as club’s avoid using dressing rooms together.

Cricket is classed as non-contact sport, but when asked about cricket in the commons he said that “the ball is a natural vector for the disease”.

Last week the governing body, the ECB, issued a statement saying that it was looking to early July as “the earliest possible return for recreational cricket”.

The game would come back under what the ECB describe as “under Government rules and with modifications to the game to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all involved.”

The statement continues: “As cricket is a non-contact sport that involves individual disciplines within a team environment, the ECB are optimistic that forms of the game can be played while respecting social distancing.

“It is the ECB’s ambition to deliver guidelines for a return to play as soon as possible after the government gives permission to proceed, but please note that given the importance of ensuring cricket clubs and individuals are sage as can be, this may take a few days from any government announcement.

“In preparation for further ECB announcements, competition organisers across counties and leagues are encouraged to consider how they will respond when the ECB advises that we are able to move into step four (where competitive cricket with modifications to the game is allowed) and whether local competitions are feasible.”

As reported last week, Lincolnshire Cricket ruled out any promotion or relegation for the 2020 season but has said it is ‘prepared to get creative’ to get some form of competitive cricket going.