All forms of international and domestic cricket have been suspended since March due to the Coronavirus pandemic across the globe. No wonder, cricket boards are facing the financial crisis.
County Cricket Clubs are going through even more difficult time financially. The situation is so grim that Hampshire County has reduced salaries since April and some players have been furloughed.
But things are expected to get better for the Hampshire County as The Ageas Bowl gears up to host the first bio-secure Test match between England and the West Indies from July 8 (subject to UK government clearance).
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Moreover, England ODI players will be training at The Ageas Bowl once the Test side moves to Old Trafford for the remainder of the series.
Even though the Test match will be played behind closed doors, the television coverage and a fully functional hotel, Hilton, will certainly help in generating revenue.
“The whole idea of a hotel on-site and a gated ground is bio-secure, so no one leaves the premises. The hotel staff will be serving the players, officials and the media. They will all be tested regularly. There will be select few from the UK media and they will have to stay at the hotel for the duration of the match. Nobody goes home after the end of day’s play,” Giles White, Director of Cricket, Hampshire, told Sportstar on Saturday (June 7).
The 25-member West Indies squad led by Jason Holder will arrive in the UK on June 9. They will serve the 14-day quarantine period in Manchester and thus will train at the iconic Old Trafford, the home of Lancashire County.
“They come down to the Ageas around July 4 ahead of the first Test. While they return to Old Trafford for the second and third Tests, the England white-ball side is going to be training at the Ageas from July 16 to prepare for the ODI series against Ireland, scheduled from July 30 [provisionally]. There will be two teams working between two different venues, training and preparing, and then playing,” White added.
In order to make some recovery, Giles White is pinning his hopes on the television coverage of the Test match.
“Lot of money comes through TV rights. Getting international cricket on TV is a big part of helping the game as a whole in this country. Every county will benefit from international cricket. It is good for us that we are also hosting a Test match. Hopefully, the hotel will also be full for the next three months,” he said.
If the Coronavirus cases continue to subside in the UK, Ageas Bowl will host a number of Test and ODI fixtures in the coming months.
“At the end of the summer, we might be hosting Australia. There is a hell lot of cricket, potentially six Test matches and 12 One Day Internationals. There is a lot of dialogue with the government and medical team, it is a big operation. If things change, it remains to be seen if that has an effect on the staging of cricket,” Giles said.
(Inputs from Sportstar)
