SRI LANKA CRICKET NEWS (OCTOBER 2020) – Compiled by Victor Melder

With England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) not willing to put their players through a two-week quarantine and the sudden spike in COVID-19 positive cases in Sri Lanka, there is uncertainty surrounding the proposed England Test tour to the country. England was in Sri Lanka in March to play the two-match Test series but returned home just days ahead of the first Test following the global outbreak of the virus. Though dates are yet to be confirmed, both Boards agreed to play it in January next year. “We are working to ensure the business of international cricket keeps going,” Tom Harrison, the ECB Chief Executive, was quoted as saying. “(But) the Bangladesh tour to Sri Lanka is an understandable situation for the Bangladeshi team; two weeks of quarantine is not an easy thing to agree to for players and I don’t think we would agree to that either. We will not sign off on plans we’re not comfortable with, in terms of our No. 1 priority: the health and wellbeing of players and staff on these tours.” The tour does not seem possible given the current situation in Sri Lanka. Board sources said, however, that they would hold discussions with health authorities to get quarantine rules relaxed once the current situation is under control. They tried desperately to get the rules changed to host Bangladesh in a three-match Test series but the health authorities stood firm in their decision. The tour was postponed. “Once the situation eases, we will discuss with health authorities to see how best we could go forward,” an SLC official said. “Cricket is being played elsewhere in a bubble secure environments and I think we must follow a similar line to get cricket back on the track. We cannot postpone these series forever.” However, with Sri Lanka recording a unprecedented spike in the virus with over a thousand cases reported during the week, it’s highly unlikely that rules will be bent to accommodate a visiting sports team. A similar fate may await the England series. Sri Lanka cricketers last played a series in February against West Indies. All scheduled tours to the island thereafter were put off due to the pandemic much to the players’ disappointment. England, who hosted four international teams during the recent summer, allowed visiting teams to train while being on a government-approved bio-secure bubble – a similar protocol SLC expects the Government of Sri Lanka to approve in their bid to resume cricket tours. The current situation has also put the proposed Lanka Premier League in danger of cancellation this year. The Board this week further postponed the player draft scheduled for this Friday (9) owing to the health situation. SLC fears, given the strict quarantine procedures, it will face a massive challenge to attract the big names in the game. The first edition of the T20 league is scheduled for mid-November this year and, with four out of the five team owners yet to be announced, it will most probably be a non-starter.(Sunday Times, 11.10.2020)

The Sri Lanka tour of South Africa is likely to go ahead as planned, ending a near year-long COVID enforced break from international cricket. The series will begin with a Boxing Day Test, followed by the second Test in early January. However, for this to go through, both boards will have to agree on the quarantine procedures in place in the visiting country. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) says discussions are, however ongoing for the series to materialise given the numerous challenges facing cricket boards around the world due to the global health crisis. South Africa has already agreed to host England in a six-match limited over series after their government has agreed to waive the normal requirements for visitors from ‘high risk’ places in terms of COVID-19 infection. SLC is hopeful of a similar waiver for their team. For instance, England is expected to arrive on a chartered flight to Cape Town ten days before the first match but will be allowed to train in a ‘bio-secure bubble’ during the period as opposed to the previously proposed seven-day complete isolation period. “We are in the process of finalising it,” said SLC CEO Ashley de Silva. “But it all depends on the health crisis as the situation keeps evolving but we are hopeful that the series will go ahead.” If it works out, it will be the first action for the Sri Lanka men’s national team since hosting West Indies in February before the pandemic hit. In that time, they had series against England, South Africa, India and Bangladesh at home, but had to postpone due to the nation-wide lockdown owing to the health crisis. Accordingly, the national team is expected to leave for South Africa soon after the Lanka Premier League on December 14. Sri Lanka rewrote history when they toured the land of the big-fives in 2018, registering a historic 2-0 win in the Test series. Meanwhile, SLC is also confident of getting the quarantine procedures changed to host England in January. The England series which includes two Tests was rescheduled for January next year after the visitors withdrew from the series days ahead of the first Test in Galle when the pandemic hit the island. England had expressed their reservations over the strict 14-day quarantine procedure in place in Sri Lanka – a rule that forced Bangladesh to withdraw from their Test series last month. However, given the significant financial loss the board will have to go through in the event of any cancellation to the series, the board is in constant consultation with health authorities to relax the procedures. “England and Wales Cricket Board has sent us a comprehensive plan for us with all precautionary measures in place to ensure the safety of the players. We have forwarded the same to health authorities for their approval,” de Silva said. England are expected to complete a two-week quarantine before boarding a charter flight to reach their destination. All what they require is to train after landing rather than in complete isolation for 14 days – a requirement that has discouraged teams. (Sunday Times, 25.10.2020)