The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has commented on recreational cricket following the Prime Minister’s announcement last Sunday evening.
The regular cricket season, which was due to start in April, was suspended in light of the coronavirus pandemic meaning not a single competitive ball has been bowled in Staffordshire yet.
The ECB has already announced that no professional cricket will take place until at least July 1.
A 50-page document was released the day after PM Boris Johnson’s speech, on Monday, which stated that from Wednesday, May 13 for those living in England all outdoor sport must either be done alone, with members from the same household or with one other person from outside your household while attaining a two-metre distance at all times.
Further to this, the document stated that tennis and basketball courts, golf courses and bowling greens in the country can all re-open so long as social distancing guidelines are adhered to.
England Golf has already given the green light for courses to re-open up and down the land.
Now, cricket’s national sporting body has released a statement regarding recreation matches.
It read: “We are aware that the UK Government has announced changes that affect sport and physical activity in England, which are due to come into effect on Wednesday, May 13.
“We are expecting to receive further clarity from the UK government in the coming days and in turn we will share greater detail and guidelines with the game as soon as we are able.
“Our priority is to support our colleagues and clubs across the game to deliver elements of outdoor cricket in a responsible way that does not compromise safety.
“We completely understand the level of patience that recreational players have had to demonstrate so far, and know that most will be desperate to return to the nets to practice. We ask for a little more time to plan out the best way to deliver this opportunity to everyone as safely as possible.
“The health and wellbeing of everyone in cricket remains our number one priority. We will share further updates towards the end of the week along with a support plan for our clubs to follow.”
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