It is safe to say that 2020 has been one of the worst year’s for cricket. From saying no to handshakes to playing matches in empty stadiums and eventually calling off almost every series or tour, Cricket in 2020 wasn’t the same as it was before, there has been a lot changes in the way cricket matches are played in held, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. 2020 has impacted cricket in various ways. Today we shall be taking a look at few factors in cricket which have been affected and impacted in 2020 and COVID-19.
Postponement of the T20I WC:
In July 2020, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced that both the 2020 and 2021 editions of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup had each been postponed by one year due to the pandemic. Therefore, the 2020 tournament was moved to November 2021, and the 2021 tournament was moved to October 2022. The 2023 Cricket World Cup was also rescheduled to take place eight months later than planned, with the tournament moved to October and November 2023. Australia and India retained the rights to host the tournaments, with the ICC announcing on 8 August that India will host the 2021 tournament, and Australia will host the 2022 tournament.
Bio Bubble:
Bio-secure bubble is an environment which is cut off from the outside world. Everyone engaged in the tournament, including the players, support staff and match officials will be limited only to a few places. The point is to minimize the risk of contracting the infection through limited contact from outside world.
No outings, no friends:
A key element of the bio-bubble is that players will not be permitted to have access to families, visitors, friends, and relatives for the duration of a tournament. Cricketers will not be permitted to pay a visit to family or friends, outside the team’s bio-secure environmen
Tight Schedule:
Lack of matches in 2020 means that most of the matches and tournaments which were all set to commence in 2020 would now be postponed to 2021. This means cricketers and their respective teams would have a very tight schedule and would have to remain fit and flexible.