Breaking: ECB suspend professional cricket in England and Wales till May 28th amidst coronavirus outbreak
- All forms of professional cricket have been suspended by the ECB amidst coronavirus fears
- Earlier today, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that bars restaurants will also remain shut indefinitely
![The ECB have suspended all forms of professional cricket till May 29th](data:image/svg+xml,<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 800 533"></svg>)
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have announced on Friday, 20th March that no form of professional cricket will be played in the United Kingdom till the 28th of May amidst growing fears of the coronavirus pandemic. As per reports, plans are in place to modify the cricketing calendar and a resolution is expected in the coming weeks. ECB CEO Tom Harrison confirmed in an official statement that revised schedules will be drafted to begin the season in June, July or August.
"The decision to delay the start of the season has been essential, given the circumstances the nation faces. With the information available to us at the moment, a delay to the start of the professional cricket season until May 28 was unavoidable."
Harrison confirmed that people's safety is of paramount importance in times like these and stressed that they will work diligently behind the scenes to secure the future of the game.
"Critically, we can also remain as flexible and adaptable as possible, within the obvious restrictions we face."
"Securing the future of the game will be a primary focus as we plot a revised schedule with an emphasis on the most financially important forms of the game for the counties across international and domestic cricket.''
Earlier on Friday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that all bars, restaurants, gyms and other public venues will remain shut indefinitely. Additionally, a huge financial aid was also promised for workers to assist them in a time of distress.
Since then, the ECB have followed suit and suspended professional cricket till May 28th at least. In the meantime, it has been reported that they will remain committed to drafting a new calendar to accommodate all the action that was scheduled to take place during the period of suspension.
Published 21 Mar 2020, 01:29 IST
