Roy getting very twitchy

London – England opener Jason Roy (above) is desperate to get back to playing cricket, even if matches have to take place behind closed doors due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Roy, who was part of England’s World-Cup winning team last year, had a taste of playing in an empty stadium in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) earlier this year and said it was a bizarre experience.

“No atmosphere,” said the 29-year-old. “Simple as that to be honest. It was a very strange feeling.

“You’re used to, as a batsman, with the bowler running in, it being relatively quiet. You learn to block out the crowd but then as soon as that ball’s done you hear the crowd going absolutely berserk and over there when that was the case it was dead silence, it was the strangest thing.”

The PSL, a Twenty20 competition, closed its doors to spectators in March before suspending the competition days later due to coronavirus.

Despite that experience, Roy, a destructive opening batsman, wants to get back to playing, with the start of the English season delayed until 1 July at the earliest.

“I’m more than happy to play behind closed doors,” he said. “I think it would be nice just to get out there.”

The Surrey player said the British government’s lockdown meant he was severely limited in his ability to practise.

“I’m shadow-batting in the mirror, I’m looking pretty good,” he joked. “So that’s all I can do, to be honest, hitting a tennis ball against my wall here at home, going a bit stir crazy.”

Roy said the ongoing disruption meant it could make sense to postpone the T20 World Cup, scheduled for Australia in October, but he said the players would make sure they were ready if it went ahead.

He said he was happy to start playing again when asked to by his bosses, describing himself as a “pawn in the sporting world”.

Meanwhile, the Daily Telegraph reported that England could begin their rescheduled three-Test series against the West Indies on 8 July. – AFP