Yorkshire CCC fear season will be played behind closed doors

Yorkshire County Cricket Club chief executive Mark Arthur believes it is increasingly unlikely that cricket will take place in front of crowds this year following another delay to the season.

Arthur feels it is probable all games will have to be behind closed doors after the England and Wales Cricket Board announced that the campaign not now begin until at least July 1.

Arthur is hopeful that cricket will resume around that date with matches either screened on television or live-streamed to supporters. He also hopes it will still be possible to play a significant chunk of Championship cricket.

The ECB has already warned that the sport faces a £300m black hole if there is no cricket this summer, and the governing body is set to postpone its inaugural Hundred competition.

With scientists warning that significant social distancing will have to remain in place for at least the rest of the year, the sport faces a huge logistical headache just to get games on behind closed doors.

Asked whether it is likely that all games will have to be played without crowds, Arthur said:

“It’s becoming ever more possible. Social distancing, and so on – it all has to be taken into account when a decision is made.

“There’s an argument, in our stadium, where you can accommodate up to 18,500 people, that you could have social distancing within the ground.

But then you’d have to consider things like toilet facilities, which would have to be monitored, a one-in, one-out type of thing, and it would become quite difficult when you think about all the various factors.

“It looks ever more necessary (all cricket behind closed doors). People can easily read between the lines of the government advice, and all cricket is doing is following the same information that the public are getting.”