The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted cricket across the planet, mirroring its impact across all sports. Across the planet and to variable degrees, leagues and competitions have either been rescheduled or canceled since last year. Join us as we take a look at the effects of the Corona Virus on the world of cricket 2020-21
Tournaments
In July 2020, the International Cricket Council (ICC) declared that both the 2020 and 2021 editions of the ICC Men’s T20 tournament had been deferred by one year because of the pandemic. So, the 2020 tournament was rescheduled to November 2021, and also the 2021 tournament was moved to November 2022. The 2023 Cricket tournament was additionally rescheduled to take place eight months later than planned, with the tournament moved to October and November 2023. Australia and India nation preserved the rights to host the tournaments, with ICC saying on eight August that India can host the 2021 tournament, and Australia can host the 2022 tournament.
Also on eight August, the independent agency confirmed that the 2021 Women’s Cricket tournament and also the tournament’s qualifier had been deferred by one year because of the pandemic.
Rankings
The May of 2021 saw the drop of 5 teams from the ICC t20I tournament ranking because of failing to play enough games in their fixture to qualify for the relevant period.
Africa
The coronavirus pandemic impacted many international cricket fixtures and tournaments. The 2020 ACA Africa T20 Cup Finals were set to take place in Kenya in March 2020, before it had been deferred in line with the Kenyan government’s 30-day ban on international gatherings. On thirteen March 2020, Netherlands ‘ tour to Namibia was off because of the pandemic. 3 days later, Ireland’s tour to Zimbabwe also was canceled. On 24th March, the Namibia Tri-National series was deferred.
On eleven June 2020, the ICC confirmed that the Cricket World Cup Challenge League (B) was rescheduled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The following month, the ICC additionally confirmed that the Namibia Tri-Nation Series, required to take place in September 2020, was postponed.
In August 2020, Afghanistan’s tour to Zimbabwe was canceled, following a rise of COVID-19 cases in Zimbabwe. Later that month, the Netherlands’ tour to Zimbabwe was also called off, alongside Pakistan’s planned tour to South Africa. In Dec 2020, England’s ODI matches against South Africa were postponed following a COVID-19 occurrence.
In Dec 2020, the primary match of South Africa vs England (under South Africa’s ICC Men’s cricket world cup Super League series) was also postponed (later on canceled) once 2 players of the England Cricket Team tested positive for COVID-19 and additionally found breaching codes of bio-secure atmosphere.
In early February 2021, Australian men declared that they might prorogue their future Tour of South Africa owing to the unacceptable risk of getting COVID-19 while traveling, alongside problems in repatriating any Tour party members were some to contract the sickness.
Asia
The 2020 Everest Premier League in Nepal was also postponed on twelve March. On thirteen March, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) declared that the beginning of 2020 Indian Premier League is going to be postponed from 29th March to fifteen Apr. On sixteen Apr, BCCI suspended the tournament indefinitely because of the pandemic and on four June BCCI declared that IPL can be staged outside India. On thirteen March, BCCI off the ODI matches between India and South Africa on fifteen and eighteen March, that were originally declared to be played without spectators. On a similar day, the two-match Test series between Sri Lanka and England, scheduled to contend in March 2020, was deferred. The remaining seven matches of the 2020 Road Safety World series were rescheduled to a later date. It had been earlier stated that the remaining seven matches of the tournament would be contested behind closed doors in DY Patil Stadium.
A women’s quadrangular series was rescheduled to take place in Thailand in Apr 2020, however was called off a month before it began. The 2020 Malaysia Cricket World Cup Challenge League A, scheduled to take place in March 2020, was deferred, alongside 2 T20I matches between a World XI and Asia XI side.
On twelve March, the Pakistan Cricket Board Cricket declared that each remaining match of the Pakistan Super League’s current fifth season in Karachi would be closed to spectators. On sixteen March 2020, the remaining play-offs within the 2020 Pakistan Super League were deferred because of an enormous spike within the variety of coronavirus cases around the country. The Bangladesh tour of Pakistan for one ODI and a matched game was additionally deferred. On twenty-four March 2020, the International Cricket Council (ICC) confirmed that all ICC qualifying events regularly requiring place before thirty June 2020 had been deferred because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This enclosed 2020–21 ICC Men’s T20 tournament Asia Qualifier for Western and western sub-regions.
On nine Apr 2020, there was an associate degree announcement of the postponement of the Australia-Bangladesh Test series. On twenty Apr 2020, Sri Lanka and South Africa cricket boards confirmed that the SA tour to the island nation has been deferred.
On twenty-three June 2020, the New Zealand cricket team’s tour to Bangladesh, which was regular to require a place in August, was deferred. A day later, on twenty-four June 2020, Bangladesh’s tour to Sri Lanka was deferred because of the pandemic.
On the 9th of July, 2020, the 2020 Asia Cup was deferred till the next July with the 2020 Asia Cup Qualifier tournament canceled. On twenty-five August 2020, ICC confirmed that 2020 2020 Malaysia Cricket World Cup Challenge League A tournament had been deferred because of the pandemic
In India, the 2020–21 Ranji Trophy tournament was canceled because of the pandemic, the first time since the tournament’s origination within the 1934–35 season that the Ranji Trophy wasn’t in command. On 5th May 2021, the 2021 Indian Premier League was suspended indefinitely, once an increase in COVID-19 cases. It’s scheduled to play the rest of its games from September nineteen to September 19th, 2021, in the UAE.
English
