A series of grave importance, says CWI CEO

Cricket West Indies had a tough decision to make when an opportunity presented itself to tour England for a three-match Test series while a pandemic was still raging.

Fast forward to June, Jason Holder’s men are quarantined in Manchester for a Test series which begins on July 8.

Had they turned down the offer since they were going from a largely unaffected Caribbean to the massively-hit England, most would have understood, but the West Indies board - in consultation with the players - decided to give it a go. A decision many English cricketers and the England And Wales Cricket Board (ECB) hailed as ‘brave’ and ‘great for the game’.

Bon homie aside, this series gives every other cricket playing nation a template to build on regarding the new interim rules laid down by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and other SOPs not just for organisers and administrators but for players too. The last time anyone caught a whiff of international cricket, it was back in mid-March.

“This series is among the most important Test series to ever have been played,” Johnny Grave, the CWI CEO, told DH from the bio-secure bubble in England. “It’s not just important for West Indies and England, it’s also important for world cricket because what happens in this series sets the template for the future. Everyone, especially the players, will be looking at this series with a magnifying glass, trying to pick up on things.”

He continued: “The Caribbean, among a few other countries in the world, is almost COVID-19 free so it did take a lot of strength on our part of sign on the tour to England. We realised the risk but we also trust our judgement. We signed when health officials from both sides did a full-fledged scan of the venues and approved the bio-secure bubble."

Grave did admit that there were some nerves when the topic was on the table during a meeting of the bigwigs in May, but the general consensus upon clearance from the medical team was positive.

“The only concern was the health of our cricketers. We couldn’t force them to play this series, which is also why we were completely understanding of the three players who didn’t want to go on the tour,” said Grave, referring to Darren Bravo, Shimron Hetmyer and Keemo Paul.

“These are tough times and we won’t reprimand them for it, obviously. Those days of administration are over. Also, I feel like world over, other boards will face a similar situation where some players want out. These are tough times and the boards have to show emotional maturity.”

After the quarantine, England will train for three weeks before turning up for the first Test in Southampton. The second and third Tests will be played at Old Trafford.

“There is a lot of pressure on us to deliver,” said Grave. “This pandemic break is unprecedented in world cricket, and we’re the first ones to agree to tour, so in some sense this is a gamble on our end, but a very safe gamble. We ran the logistics through a fine comb and now we can surely say we’re ready.

Speaking about the series' immediate impact, Grave said: “SOPs, hygiene measures, anti-saliva rules, Covid subs, non-neutral umpires and other ICC interim rules…. it will all be on the show. This series will change how the administrators decide on SOPs for the future. I can’t impress enough on how important this series is for world cricket.”