Australia still eyeing one-day England tour, says Finch
Australia are still preparing to tour England, white-ball cricket captain Aaron Finch said yesterday, even as the pandemic forced the postponement of a series against Zimbabwe slated for August. The team were “conscious of being ultra-flexible” under the coronavirus restrictions but were still mentally preparing to head to England for a planned limited-overs tour, Finch said.
“As a player I know that in my mind I am preparing to go to England and play,” he said. “Whether that happens — we’ll wait and see.”
Even in Australia, which has dealt well in suppressing the virus, the recent spike of cases in Melbourne was proof players could never be certain when they would play again, he added. “There might be a tour [which] comes up at relatively short notice because we can get there and that’ll be brilliant. Whatever it takes... whatever we have to do get a game up and going is in the best interest of world cricket.”
AUSTRALIA POSTPONE ZIMBABWE ONE-DAY SERIES IN AUGUST
Australia postponed the oneday international series against Zimbabwe in August, the latest sporting fixtures to fall victim to the coronavirus pandemic. Citing “concern for the health and safety of players, match officials, and volunteers”, Cricket Australia announced the three-match series would not go ahead.
The games were to have been played on August 9, 12 and 15. Under current Australian regulations, the Zimbabwean team would likely have had to endure a 14-day quarantine when entering the country, and possible further isolation when travelling across state boundaries within Australia.
BRESNAN JOINS WARWICKSHIRE
Former England paceman Tim Bresnan has joined Warwickshire, it was announced. The 35-year-old, released by his native Yorkshire earlier this month, will spend the 2020 campaign on loan with Birmingham-based Warwickshire.
Bresnan has also agreed a subsequent two-year deal with the Bears, subject to clearance by the England and Wales Cricket Board. Bresnan had been a Yorkshire mainstay since his first-class debut in 2003.
He played 142 games for England in all formats, impressing during the 2010/11 Ashes series victory in Australia.
Bresnan’s existing Yorkshire contract was due to run out at the end of the season. Yorkshire said Bresnan would be ineligible to play for Warwickshire against them, should the counties meet in any format this season. County cricket is due to return at the start of August, with the format still to be decided.
ENGLISH COUNTY SEASON TO START ON AUGUST 1
The English county cricket season will start on August 1, the England and Wales Cricket Board announced on Monday. The format has still to be decided, although the ECB said this was "due to be agreed" by the 18 first-class counties in early July. Officials had previously announced that the inaugural edition of the Hundred franchise competition had been scrapped because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The first Test between England and the West Indies behind closed doors at Southampton, starting on July 8, is set to be the first major international cricket match since lockdown.
The opening round of the first-class County Championship was originally scheduled to begin on April 12.
The ECB has said the Twenty20 Blast is their most lucrative domestic format, with international fixtures the biggest cash draw. Health and safety remains the major concern for the ECB, which has approved the return to training of first-class counties on or before July 1.