Play or shut down

Frustration grows as SLC struggles to resume international cricket over tough health guidelines

It is now 226 days since the national team took to the field. On March 6, 2020, Sri Lanka played their last international against West Indies. The wait continues. Repeated attempts to get them back in action have failed with strict quarantine procedures keeping international players from visiting.

Bangladesh pulled out of their tour at the last minute when talks failed to change Government quarantine policy. England and Wales Cricket Board have similar concerns ahead of their rescheduled tour to the island in January next year. If the policy doesn't shift, the series could be a non- starter.

This would be devastating to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) which wants to fill its coffers through broadcast money while the players are impatient to play after a long hiatus.

Visitors to the island must go through a 14-day strict quarantine in which they will be in complete isolation in a hotel room. For cricketers, however, the Government is proposing they resume training after the eighth day of arrival. This, too, was agreed to after much pressure.

Foreign teams refused to go through the complete isolation period. Professionals need to spend significant time in training to keep abreast with the game. Thus, even seven days in complete isolation is beyond acceptable for any sport.

England, one of the worst affected by COVID-19 with over 670,000 cases and over 43,000 deaths, were the first to resume international cricket, hosting West Indies in June/July in a bio-bubble. With the infrastructure in place, where hotels are inbuilt into the grounds, England allowed tourists to train during the 14-day quarantine period in a complete bio- secure environment.

A bio-bubble is a tightly controlled environment under quarantine from the outside world and can only be accessed by a limited number of people, thereby reducing the chances of contracting an infection.

West Indies arrived on a chartered jetliner and resumed their training schedule almost immediately after landing, pursuant to a negative COVID test. Sri Lanka will have issues in replicating the blueprint implemented by the England and Wales Cricket Board as grounds are less developed. But

CRICKET

they could take a cue from ECB’s bio- secure policy to devise a plan that best suits local conditions.

America, while reporting the highest number of positive cases, wrapped up the NBA season and hosted the US Open in New York. The Europa Cup and Bundesliga in Germany and the English Premier League were all played in bio-secure environments. The Indian Premier League (IPL) is currently in fullswing in UAE.

A prominent doctor, when asked whether international sports could resume here in the near future, said life should go ahead as before in the new norm.

"We have done all events including an election," he pointed out. "We should go ahead living with COVID. This is the new norm."

The government strategy has been strongly criticised. This week, Mickey Arthur, Sri Lanka head coach, said international cricket must be played if the game is to rebound from a difficult year. "We need to get cricket back up and running. Otherwise, we may as well shut the whole thing down and wait for a vaccine," Arthur told the PA news agency. "I'm really positive. I'm hoping we can fulfil our fixtures in South Africa come December and then have England over here to start a really busy 2021. We are an industry that needs to be playing, and being broadcast, to keep the lifeblood of the game going.

Similar sentiments were expressed by national players whose careers have taken a severe beating professionally and financially due to the COVID-enforced long break.”

Given the contrasting circumstances, it is hardly surprising how this unprecedented challenge is being met in different ways and at different speeds in different parts of the world. But one thing is clear. International cricket must resume as soon as possible. The authorities must devise a plan for it while maintaining the safety and health of participants. Either that, or shut down completely, as Arthur says, without confusing everyone. Cricket has suffered massively at the hands of self-centred bureaucrats over the years in Sri Lanka and another blow is a hard pill to swallow.