England vs West Indies Square Off in Three-Test Series Post COVID19 Pandemic

[Jay]

The first Test between England and the West Indies which marks the return of international cricket after a 4-month hiatus due to Corona virus pandemic is all set to begin today.

The three-match Test series will be played in a bio-secure bubble - behind closed doors, with no crowds allowed, no age-old practice of shinning the cricket ball using saliva and other norms.

The 1st Test will be played from Jul 8-12 at Rose Bowl / Ageas Bowl Cricket Stadium in Southampton.

For the first time in its 143-year history Test cricket will have no spectators.

Let’s follow this historical beginning of a new era in Cricket and get used to the new norms post the pandemic.

[Parthiv]

England has declared a 13-man squad for the first Test match.
In the absence of Joe Root, Ben Stokes has been handed the captaincy of the team and is set to become England’s 81st Test captain.
9 players will be present on the field as reserves during the entire match.

The West Indies have not won a Test series in England since 1988, but Jason Holder’s team are the holders of the Wisden Trophy after a 2-1 victory in the Caribbean last year.

England vs West Indies 2020 Schedule (All times in IST)

1st Test: 08-12 July 2020 (Wednesday to Sunday)

Venue: Ageas Bowl, Southampton at 03:30 PM

2nd Test: 16-20 July 2020 (Thursday to Monday)

Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester at 03:30 PM

3rd Test: 24-28 July 2020 (Friday to Tuesday)

Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester at 03:30 PM

England 2020 Test squads

England Squad (1st Test): Ben Stokes ©, Jos Buttler (WK), James Anderson, Jofra Archer, Dominic Bess, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Zak Crawley, Joe Denly, Ollie Pope, Dom Sibley, Chris Woakes and Mark Wood.

West Indies 2020 Test squads

Jason Holder ©, Shane Dowrich (WK), Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Kraigg Brathwaite, Shamarh Brooks, John Campbell, Roston Chase, Rahkeem Cornwall, Chemar Holder, Shai Hope, Alzarri Joseph, Raymon Reifer and Kemar Roach.

[Yash]

It’s good to see International Cricket returning with a set of protocols for the safety of players. The 3 match series will be played without spectators in a bio-secure environment. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has issued a list of do’s and don’ts in a 74-page booklet that it has sent to Southampton.

• There will be no ball boys, and ground staff won’t go within 20 metres of the players on the field.
• Team sheets will be digital. Scorers will not share pens and pencils. Accredited personnel will be tracked through a chip-enabled Covid tracker card.
• Only the two captains, Ben Stokes and Jason Holder, and match referee Chris Broad will go out for the toss, says the booklet. There will be no cameras at the toss, and no handshakes after
• If the ball goes into the stands for six then squad players wearing gloves will throw it back. Nobody else is allowed to touch it.
• Cleaning breaks will be given to sanitise stumps and bails, reporters and photographers covering matches in personal protective equipment (PPE)

[Parthiv]

Oh! What a match it will be!

No spectators
No contact celebrations
No cheer from fans
Reporters and photographers covering matches in personal protective equipment (PPE)

[Varshith]

117 days since we saw the last cricketing action. A year after the introduction of concussion substitutes in Test cricket, the coronavirus crisis has enforced the introduction of the COVID-19 substitution rules. According to the rule, teams will be allowed to substitute players displaying symptoms of COVID-19 during a Test match. Due to the fact that matches may now be officiated by less experienced umpires, teams will be permitted three unsuccessful DRS reviews per innings as opposed to the two permitted earlier.

[Aman]

ICC bans use of saliva on ball

The players will not be allowed to use saliva to shine the ball, as the ICC has banned the use of saliva to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

“If a player does apply saliva to the ball, the umpires will manage the situation with some leniency during an initial period of adjustment for the players, but subsequent instances will result in the team receiving a warning,” the ICC release said.

“A team can be issued up to two warnings per innings but repeated use of saliva on the ball will result in a 5-run penalty to the batting side. Whenever saliva is applied to the ball, the umpires will be instructed to clean the ball before play recommences,” it added.

There is also a provision for coronavirus substitutes if required.

[Kuldeep]

The toss for the 1st Test has been delayed due to wet outfield and gloomy weather. A typical English weather at the Southampton with rain coming on and off!

[Parthiv]

Day 2 : England 204 all out - Holder gets 6

|England| 204 all out (67.3 overs)|
|West Indies| 57 - 1 (19.3 overs)|

Jason Holder (6 wkts) and Shanon Gabriel (4 wkts) were the stars with the ball while Stokes led team were bowled out for 204 in the first innings.

Who do you think will win the 1st Test? England or WI?

[Jay]

Solidarity towards Black Lives Matter Movement

England and West Indies cricketers unite to take a knee for 30 seconds before the start of the first Test at the Ageas Bowl yesterday to show their support for the Black Lives Matter movement.

[Parthiv]

1st Test - Day 3

Finally, Mark Wood gets a Wicket

Only Jofra Archer, went Wicketless

1st Innings:
WI 318 (102) , ENG 204 (67.3)

Ben Stokes 14-5-49-4

West Indies lead by 107 runs

[Yash]

West Indies beat England by four wickets in the first international cricketing action since the coronavirus pandemic. Shannon Gabriel was awarded the player of the match for his superb bowling display. West Indies lead 1-0 in the three match series and they have not won a Test series in England for 32 years.

[Varshith]

In the first international cricket match in more than three months, West Indies defeated England by four wickets in a thrilling contest. The win has also given West Indies their first points in the World Test Championship points table. West Indies now sit on the seventh spot with 40 points while England are at No. 4 in the table with 146 points.

[Parthiv]

2nd Test starts in Manchester from today. Joe Root back as England captain after missing the first Test due to the birth of his second child.

2nd Test: 16-20 July 2020 (Thursday to Monday)

Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester at 03:30 PM

If the first Test was about how bowlers would cope with the no-saliva rule, the 2nd test will be about how batsmen hit their strides after a disappointing performance in 1st test.

[Amit]

Not going to be easy for England to win 2nd Test, says Michael Vaughan in his Preview

Advantage ENGLAND as skipper ROOT is back | ENG vs WI: 2nd Test Preview

#AakashVani

[Saket]

Jofra Archer has been left out of the England side for the 2nd Test in Manchester following a breach of the team’s biosecurity protocols.

Archer’s breach was while travelling between the Ageas Bowl and Emirates Old Trafford. Players and staff have been wearing a GPS tracking device in their accreditation throughout the series, and travelled individually between the two venues.

“I am extremely sorry for what I have done,” Archer said. "I have put not only myself, but the whole team and management in danger. I fully accept the consequences of my actions, and I want to sincerely apologise to everyone in the bio-secure bubble.

Archer would be required to undergo 5 days of self-isolation, during which he will twice be tested for Covid-19. After two negative results, he would be permitted to return to the group.

[Abhishek1]

Jofra Archer has been cleared to play in the final Test of the series against West Indies despite breaching bio-security protocols after the first test. Ashley Giles, the managing director of England men’s cricket said the breach could have been a disaster which cost English cricket tens of millions of pounds.But a hearing chaired by Giles ended with Archer being given a fine to be around £15,000, the value of his match fee for the second test and an official written warning.

[Yash]

Dominic Sibley became the first player to use saliva on the ball in the post Covid-19 era amid ICC guidelines. Umpire Michael Gough sanitised the ball after England team themselves brought the incident into umpires’ attention. As per the rules, a team can be issued up to two warnings per innings but repeated use of saliva on the ball will result in a 5-run penalty to the batting side. Whenever saliva is applied to the ball, the umpires will be instructed to clean the ball before play recommences.

[Jay]

England beat West Indies by 113 runs: 2nd Test

Series level 1-1

[Saket]

Ben Stokes - Player of the Match

1st Innings - 176 (356)
1/29 ( 13)

2nd Innings - 78* ( 57)
2/30 (14.4)

[Yash]

The 3 match test series is tied 1-1 and the two teams will be fighting it out in the series decider at Old Trafford. Jofra Archer returns back to the squad after his controversial breach of coronavirus protocols. West Indies will aim to create history by beating England at home after 32 years. Also the ECB and the West Indies Cricket board have agreed that the Wisden Trophy will be retired after the final test and a new series trophy Richards-Botham Trophy will be played when England next face West Indies in Test cricket.