“The safety of players, staff and our community is our first priority”
The ECB has announced plans for England men’s players to return to individual training next week.
With the easing of lockdown restrictions in the United Kingdom, approximately 30 players are to be asked to return to training as the ECB hope to host West Indies for Tests in July.
While observing social-distancing measures, players will visit local venues and train individually in the presence of a coach, a physio and, where possible, a strength and conditioning coach.
The ECB will request for counties to provide the services of their coaching staff to players, with the governing body to cover those costs.
Alongside social distancing, other safety precautions will include players and support staff having their temperatures taken before training and physios wearing PPE – provided and funded by the ECB – when treating any injuries. Furthermore, dressing rooms at venues will be closed; players and support staff will arrive in their training kit.
England’s bowlers – some centrally contracted and others picked from county cricket – will be the first to test the waters next week. Following two weeks of building up their workloads, batsmen and wicketkeepers will follow in beginning their individual training programmes.
The group of players to return to training will be announced on Monday. Speaking to reporters, Ashley Giles, the ECB’s director of men’s cricket said: “We are not going to force anyone to go back to training or playing if they are not comfortable.”
This remains a first phase for the return of training. According to government plans, a second phase will allow for ‘social clustering’ within the training environment, meaning small groups of players will be able to interact in closer contact. The ECB has said that it will announce the next two phases of training in due course. England Women are currently set to return to training in late June, while the ECB remains in dialogue with the 18 first-class counties over when preparations for the return of the domestic game can begin.
“These are the first steps for players return to training ahead of international cricket potentially resuming later this summer,” Giles said in a statement.
“The safety of players, staff and our community is our first priority throughout this protocol. We are committed to adhering to public health guidelines and Government directives intended to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
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“To be clear, we will only train and potentially play cricket behind closed doors if we know it is absolutely safe to do so and is fully supported by the Government.
“We are in constant dialogue with players, coaches and counties to determine what is possible during this period and what facilities will be available to us. We are thankful that we have a united front across all of cricket’s stakeholders to prepare the players in a safe and secure environment.”
