Economists have warned of grave consequences as an after effect of COVID-19 pandemic that has brought the world to a standstill. Most of us will feel the pinch as a result of the lockdown and cricket is no different. Already Cricket Australia is downsizing staff and cutting salaries. Thankfully, Sri Lanka Cricket has not taken any drastic measures so far. Their decision to go out of their way and help struggling clubs and cricket associations by providing monthly allowances need to be commended.
Significant financial losses for all cricket boards across the world is unavoidable. Apart from India and England, most other cricket boards will not be able to withstand these tough times. So the responsibility on the two richest cricket bodies in the world in making sure that others who play the game are able to hold their heads high is paramount.
As of now, both England and India are keener to put their house in order rather than looking at the bigger picture. True, charity begins at home but it shouldn’t end there. England and Wales Cricket Board has expressed interest to extend their home season which means the inaugural edition of the HUNDRED will be held later in the season. The initial signs are that all four bilateral series scheduled to be held in England – Tests against West Indies and Pakistan, and limited overs games against Australia and Ireland will go to plan.
Despite BCCI President Sourav Ganguly clearly stating that it will take a long time to resume any form of cricket in India, you have seen some officials holding smaller posts at world’s richest cricket body exploring the ideas of when the IPL could play. One of them had gone to the extent of wondering whether the showpiece event could take place during the time slotted for T-20 World Cup! Effectively what he is saying is to play the IPL instead of T-20 World Cup.
The ideal scenario would be that everyone prioritizing the T-20 World Cup even at the expense of it being played in front of empty stadiums. The television revenue from such a global event is vital and for smaller boards like Sri Lanka the participation revenue they would get is important for their survival.
India will be in high demand in the few months soon after the lockdown ends as many nations would want to host them for bilateral series. Sri Lankan officials are still hopeful that they would be able to host Virat Kohli’s side as scheduled in July. But pragmatically, they will be running out of time and it has to be rescheduled like the series against South Africa and England that were postponed. But will India have the time is the question?
In case of lack of time, a way out of the crisis is playing tri-nation competitions and splitting the profits. Ideally quadrangular competitions or ones involving more teams are better suited. However, there is an ICC regulation that states that individual boards can not host competitions involving multiple teams other than tri-nation events. The ICC can make an exception given the desperate times.
Or else, the ICC themselves can take the initiative and conduct a second global event involving all full members and a couple of associates. Some may argue that when there is already a T-20 World Cup, will another global event add colour? The second ICC event of the year can be a 50 over competition. The fact is that the 50 over competitions bring more television revenue than T-20 competitions. It will be an ideal opportunity to play the Champions Trophy biannually.
In these uncertain times, all stakeholders of the sport are going to take a hit. The elite players are secure given that they have enough resources thanks to their annual contracts but those that who will struggle are professional cricket players who play domestics mostly.
A large number of our players make a living by playing league cricket in England and all of them will struggle to make ends meet with their main source of income being denied this year. To add insult to injury, the domestic season too wasn’t completed and they missed out on match fees.
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Coaches, curators, ground staff and all involved in the game are going to get a hit in these uncertain times and there is so much even the authorities could do to help them. In troubled times such as these, we need smart and intelligent administrators who are able to think out of the box and provide solutions.
The CEOS of the Cricket World met via video conference on Thursday and they have touched base taking to account the seriousness of the pandemic in their respective regions. They are supposed to meet over the coming weeks as well to find solutions out of these tough times and fingers crossed we will see that these concerns are addressed soon.
