November 14 start on the cards for metro cricket
Cricket Victoria has settled on a date that, if councils and clubs are supportive, should be earmarked for metropolitan cricket to start. But Premier Cricket is tipped to start two weeks later.
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Uncertainty still surrounds cricket in Victoria, but a potential starting date of November 14 has emerged for metropolitan associations.
In a COVID-19 update sent to affiliates last Friday, CV said it expected players in all age groups could start training as soon as the state hit “step three’’ — October 26 — in the Government's “road map’’ out of the pandemic.
It said that if councils and clubs were supportive, November 14 should be earmarked for Round 1.
That would allow for close to three weeks’ training after restrictions ease from October 26, and take into account Melbourne Cup Day and the potential for an intra-club hit-out or practice match with a neighbouring club to test the COVID-19 protocols.
A three-week build-up would allow players to “get in some decent bowling loads for bowlers to reduce the likelihood of injury – but we appreciate that the priority will be to start matches asap’’.
Given Premier Cricket’s desire for a five-week lead-in, November 28 shapes as the entry point to the season.
But officials are stressing that all dates are contingent on “trigger points’’ for the easing of restrictions to be met.
Cricket Victoria is waiting for a response from the State Government on a number of issues, including:
* when training can resume in Melbourne and the size of groups.
* when turf wickets can be prepared.
* information about the sharing of equipment, which is banned under training and playing protocols released by Cricket Australia.
* clarity to ensure that the “outdoor fitness’’ limit of 10 for “exercise/recreation’’ will not impact cricket match team numbers.
Cricket Victoria is also encouraging associations to play only one-day and T20 matches for the entire season.
The shorter formats would permit more matches to be finished should a third wave of COVID-19 wave hit and reduce the risk of games having to be stopped halfway through if a player or players were impacted by COVID-19.
They would also allow top-order batsmen to bat more and key bowlers to bowl more.
CV has also raised the prospect of “La Nina”-style weather patterns for summer, “which typically see increased rainfall and cooler daytime temperatures – but a shift in temperature extremes … (not) great for maximising the number of cricket matches played’’.
Finals should finish on grounds shared by winter codes by the end of March at the latest to allow winter sports to start from April 2021 “given their season long loss in 2020’’.
New Cricket Victoria chairman David Maddocks has told members that cricket faces “considerable challenges as a result of the various restrictions that have been in place over recent months’’.
“Uncertain times lie ahead and there will, no doubt, be further challenges,’’ Maddocks said.
“Our board’s focus will remain the welfare of men’s, women’s, and junior cricket at all levels throughout metropolitan, regional and country Victoria.
“Our main priority is to get cricket back ‘up and running’ this season.
“In terms of the Victorian community’s participation in broader recreation and, as we hopefully emerge from COVID-19 restrictions, cricket will have an extremely important role as one of the first major sporting activities likely to become available to the public.’’.
Maddocks said CV was hoping Premier Cricket would start in November.
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