INDIA TO PLAY A TEST AGAINST ENGLAND IN SUMMER OF 2022: REPORT

LONDON: England and India have confirmed plans to play a Test in England next summer, reports said on Saturday. It has not been confirmed at this stage whether it will be a standalone game or the final Test of the series that was called off with India leading 2-1 following the cancellation of the Manchester Test, ESPNcricinfo reported.

Playing a Test will help the England board (ECB) avert the majority of the financial losses due to the cancellation, the report said. ECB chief executive Tom Harrison had said a Test in the summer of 2022 during India’s limited-overs tour can only be a “standalone” game.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is exploring ways to settle the issue after ECB approached the International Cricket Council (ICC) to decide on the status of the series. BCCI president Sourav Ganguly wants the Test to be part of the just-halted series. India players had raised concerns of possible fresh cases in the squad after a second physio tested positive for Covid-19; the Test was then called off a couple of hours before the toss. India’s three-match T20 series will begin at Old Trafford on July 1 with matches at Trent Bridge (July 3) and the Ageas Bowl (July 6). The ODIs will be played at Edgbaston (July 9), the Oval (July 12) and Lord’s (July 14).

Players’ role denied in England’s Pak pullout

England cricketers had no role in the decision to abandon their October tour of Pakistan, their union has said. New Zealand abruptly abandoned their tour minutes before the opening fixture in Rawalpindi, citing a security alert. England followed suit, calling off their men’s and women’s teams tour of Pakistan, citing players’ “mental and physical well-being”.

Team England Player Partnership (TEPP), which represents England’s international players, said the cricketers were not asked for input. “At no stage did TEPP inform the ECB that the players would not be touring,” TEPP chair Richard Bevan told ESPNcricinfo on Friday. “At no stage has the ECB ever asked TEPP or the teams, men and women, whether the tour should go ahead or whether players were prepared to tour Pakistan. It is 100% incorrect to suggest TEPP intervened to say the players would not tour.”