All the sporting activities have come to a grinding halt in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed more than 387,000 lives globally thus far.
It has been almost three months since any form of domestic or international cricket was last played.
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No wonder, former South Africa batsman Barry Richards reckons it will be tough for the cricketers to motivate themselves when they return after the Coronavirus-induced hiatus. He also warned the players against "stepping too fast" to compensate for the lost time.
"It will be tough for them to motivate themselves. Sometimes it will work in reverse. If you haven't played something for a long time, you miss it and you become very keen. So, when they get on to the park, I think sometimes you can get ahead of yourself," Richards said on the show 'Inside Out With Baggs' on Sports Ruler YouTube channel.
"You are so keen to do well that you lose your focus on what has worked for you. You are stepping too fast. They might have to take a breath and say what was working for me before lockdown and what will work for me now," he added.
The ICC Cricket Committee recently recommended a ban on the traditional practice of using saliva to maintain the shine of the ball to avoid potential on-field viral spread.
Notably, the Anil Kumle-led committee did not allow the use of artificial substances as a substitute move.
On the recent talks about whether artificial substance could be allowed to shine the ball, Richards said: "If you are trying to sanitise every germ out in this world, you are never going to do it. You can sanitise the ball but then it goes into the crowd and there’s somebody there who hasn't washed his hands...it's ridiculous.”
"Just shine the ball and get on with it. The way that they are going now...what are they going to say then...you gotta to sanitise your pads because there might be something on the pads..if it hits the ground, the helmet... We have been with germs forever. If you try to sanitise the whole world, it’s a waste of time," he further remarked.
Asked which batsman he would choose to play for his life, the 74-year-old replied: "...to win a game it would be Viv Richards, somebody to draw the game it would be someone like a VVS Laxman or Geoff Boycott, somebody to watch...I love watching Brian Lara bat."
From the modern era, Richards said he would pick current Indian captain Virat Kohli and South Africa’s AB de Villiers as the best batsmen. The other two options were Rohit Sharma and David Warner.
On five bowlers of the current generation who would have troubled top batsmen of his era, he said, "Obviously Mitchell Starc would. If you play in India, then R Ashwin would obviously be very challenging.
"Jimmy Anderson, swing bowler...Trent Boult, he is a pretty handy bowler...if you are playing in Cape Town, I think Vernon Philander would definitely be in the mix.”
(With PTI inputs)
