Stewart: Lost season could cause lasting damage
Alec Stewart remains “hopeful” that there will be some county cricket this summer, but is a realist who knows that, as Surrey’s director of cricket, he faces some tough calls when the financial shock wave hits the game.
He believes decisions taken now will affect the health of the game for the next five years. Businesses that rely on attracting crowds have been hit hardest and cricket is the only major sport to have had its entire season wiped out so far.
Stewart understands county cricket is not the No1 priority as resources are poured into arrangements for international cricket to be played at biosecure environments behind closed doors to satisfy broadcasters’ demands. But he told The Sunday Telegraph that domestic players would need the same level of safety and testing if they were to return. “I feel sorry for the players. We spend all our life as cricketers working towards specific dates, but at the moment we are guessing,” he said.
“Everyone wants to play, but you cannot have one rule for international players and assume the county players will say, ‘OK, we will chance it’. The Professional Cricketers’ Association won’t allow that.
“In financial terms, county clubs are on the same level as Division One or Two football clubs, and everyone will find it hard if, for example, it costs £30,000 for testing twice a week, which has been suggested in football. If county cricket is not a cost effective exercise then I can understand why there would be the view why not save money and play next year? Tough decisions have to be made for the health of individuals, but [also for] the health of the game. Those decisions will be important for the next five years.”
Talks will be held next week between the counties and the PCA over further pay cuts of up to 20 per cent for June. There are 130 players out of contract at the end of the summer and discussions will also address how formal contractual appraisals will work.
Stewart worries about young players who are going to lose a summer, potentially setting back their development. Many go overseas in the winter to further their cricketing education, but those trips may not be possible.
“It could be another year by the time they play again. By then they may have gone 18 months without any competitive cricket,” Stewart said.