England's managing director, Ashley Giles, believes the plan to get elite cricketers back into training is low-risk—comparing it to the safety of visiting a supermarket. That said, he cautioned that forcing players into a 10-week quarantine bubble away from their families for the sake of international fixtures would simply be unrealistic.
England managing director Ashley Giles said initial plans announced Thursday to get the country’s leading cricketers back training should be safer than going to a supermarket. But the former England spinner added that were international matches to take place amid the coronavirus it was “not realistic” for players to spend 10 weeks in squad quarantine away from their families.
Due to the ongoing pandemic, the English cricket season will not begin any sooner than July 1st.
Despite the delays, the England and Wales Cricket Board intends to move forward with its full home international calendar, starting with the West Indies three-Test series, which has been shifted from June to July.
Following the West Indies series, England is scheduled to face Pakistan in three Tests, along with limited-overs fixtures against Ireland and Australia.
On Wednesday, the UK government issued official guidance on how professional athletes can safely return to their training routines.
In response to these guidelines, the ECB is putting together a 30-player training group. The rollout begins next Wednesday, with bowlers being the first to return to work at seven designated grounds.
The process will be phased: after bowlers spend two weeks ramping up their workloads, the batsmen and wicketkeepers will begin their own training across a total of 11 venues.
England's managing director, Ashley Giles, believes the plan to get elite cricketers back into training is low-risk—comparing it to the safety of visiting a supermarket. That said, he cautioned that forcing players into a 10-week quarantine bubble away from their families for the sake of international fixtures would simply be unrealistic.
Due to the ongoing pandemic, the English cricket season will not begin any sooner than July 1st.
Despite the delays, the England and Wales Cricket Board intends to move forward with its full home international calendar, starting with the West Indies three-Test series, which has been shifted from June to July.
Following the West Indies series, England is scheduled to face Pakistan in three Tests, along with limited-overs fixtures against Ireland and Australia.
On Wednesday, the UK government issued official guidance on how professional athletes can safely return to their training routines.
In response to these guidelines, the ECB is putting together a 30-player training group. The rollout begins next Wednesday, with bowlers being the first to return to work at seven designated grounds.
Once the bowlers have spent a fortnight reaching their required fitness levels, the training program will expand to include wicketkeepers and batsmen.