Ashley Giles warns England players not to jeopardise summer schedule

A wide array of businesses will open once again on 4 July as the government ease lockdown measures, just four days before England’s first Test with the West Indies in Southampton

Ashley Giles has warned England players to respect the rules (Getty Images)

Ashley Giles has warned England players to show common sense with pubs and restaurants reopening to ensure the upcoming Test summer.

On Tuesday, prime minister Boris Johnson announced that an array of business, such as pubs, restaurants, hairdressers, cinemas and gyms, will be permitted to reopen on 4 July, four days before England are due to begin the first of three bio-secure Test matches against West Indies at the Ageas Bowl.

While players will be unable to leave the bubble during this time, some may be allowed to return to their homes before the second and third Test which will see them take up residence at Emirates Old Trafford before 16 July right the way through to 28 July. A week gap follows the culmination of this series where all players will be allowed to return home before meeting up again to begin training for the Test series against Pakistan. Giles, the director of men’s cricket, also confirmed the ECB were looking at establishing a “bridge” to the outside to allow players to come and go safely from the bubble, especially England captain Joe Root who will be by his wife’s side when she gives birth to their second child.

As such, the opportunity is there for players to take advantage of the reduction in the two-metre distancing rule. Giles, however, urges caution to ensure the series, which has cost millions to put on as the ECB looked to chase potential losses that could be as high as £380million if no cricket is played, is threatened by avoidable positive tests. At present there are no intentions to enforce restrictions on players, but the spread of the diseases is still not under control, with the UK death toll surpassing 54,000 at the time of writing.

“We haven’t talked about banning them,” said Giles. “But I think we ask them to be sensible and they have been throughout this whole process of the last three months. They need to continue that. If you come back into the environment and you haven’t been adhering to the guidelines then you put everyone else and the series at risk. So that’s all we ask. But we have a group of players who are of that way anyway.

“It will be down to all of us to police it. The players are all very aware of the seriousness of the situation and the reason why we putting them in. At some point we could have protocols within the bubble that are very very different from protocols in the general population. It is just about removing as much risk as we can.”

Tuesday marked a step forward for the Test series, with West Indies marking an end to their two-week quarantine by playing a warm-up match at Old Trafford with a team led by captain Jason Holder taking on one led by Kraigg Brathwaite.

Meanwhile a group of 30 England cricketers convened at the Ageas Bowl where they will remain until completion of the first Test, with the final day scheduled for 12 July. Players and staff were tested upon arrival and will isolate for 24 hours in the on-site hotel, spending most of the time in their rooms.

The importance of the series and a clean bill of health was reiterated by news out of Pakistan that a total of 10 players have tested positive for coronavirus ahead of their tour of England later this summer of three further Tests and three Twenty20s. The travelling squad are due for further tests on Thursday but Pakistan Cricket Board chief executive Wasim Khan has quelled any talk for now of cancelling the series by confirming those who have tested negative “will depart as per schedule” on 28 June.

The one-day series against Australia is also still on the cards. Both boards held a conference call last week which left Giles “quietly confident” of making good on the five-match series in September.

However, there was a blow for recreational cricket after the prime minister confirmed restrictions on the club game will remain in place beyond 4 July.

“The problem with cricket, as everyone understands, is that the ball is a natural vector of disease — potentially, at any rate,” said Johnson. “We’ve been around it many times with our scientific friends. At the moment we’re still working on ways to make cricket more Covid-secure but we can’t change the guidance yet.”

The ECB, however, were bemused by Johnson’s statement, believing grassroots cricket would return as part of Tuesday's announcement, especially as cricket is not a contact sport and measures are in place banning the use of saliva on the ball as a further safety measure. They have reached out to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport for clarification.