COVID-19 has posed an unprecedented crisis in front of the world. A pause seems to be dictating the world and sporting events are not very different. As July comes closer, cricket seems near too. England has hosted Windies for a bilateral series. The void of nearly 100 days is supposed to be filled with a redefined scheduling.
This has to come from the apex governing body of cricket i.e. ICC. There is very little clarity over the future on a global scale. World cups and ICC events or IPL aren’t a dream nearby. However, a new report from stuff.co.nz has suggested that International Cricket Council might bring a change in the women’s one-day world cup.
It is scheduled in early 2021 in New Zealand. Greater clarity is expected to arise when ICC decides on the T20 World Cup scheduled this year. ICC has, however, deferred its call on the future of the T20 world cup to July. The tournament is placed in October-November on the calendar with Australia being the hosts. They (Cricket Australia) have, however, stated clearly that chances of having the event as per schedule seem bleak.
Nonetheless, ICC has the final call in the matter and has decided to wait and watch. Speculations say that ICC can plan to have the tournament in February and March of 2021. These months, as mentioned above, were reserved for women’s ODI world cup. If by any means, these updates are confirmed by ICC then, everyone may face a dilemma as two big cricketing events hardly collide with each other.
In this regard, former cricketers have added that the chances of two major events going side by side seem less. Ellyse Perry says that “It depends on what happens to the men’s T20 World Cup, that could have an impact on the women’s World Cup. If that (men’s T20) tournament is postponed to next year, it’s pretty hard to think two world events are feasible to run at about the same time. I would imagine those events can’t be played concurrently. It’s really hard to have a gut feel of where things might go. In the scheme of things, a World Cup seems a bit irrelevant given everything else that has gone on”.
According to the current schedule, White Ferns shall play the inaugural match with an unconfirmed opponent on February 6 and the final of the tournament will take place on 7th March 2021. ICC shall make sure that these improvisations don’t hamper the female side of the game and a define, defined plan or schedule is put forth before bringing such a change.
Pic Credits: stuff.co.nz
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