Glamorgan Cricket: County still hopeful of summer action
- Published
Players at Glamorgan and at most of the 17 English counties are furloughed
Glamorgan chief executive Hugh Morris says the county remains hopeful of playing cricket in 2020 despite another delay.
The England and Wales Cricket Board has ruled out any county games before 1 August, though limited crowds could still be admitted if play resumes.
"It's no real surprise, but we are clearly hoping we'll have some cricket later this summer," said Morris.
"But the safety of players, officials and supporters is paramount."
"It's a fast-moving event, there are lots of different options that the counties' chief executives and the ECB are looking at."
While the ECB is prioritising preparations for a Test series between England and West Indies in July, T20 Blast and four-day Championship cricket both remain in the county game's plans if there is no further reduction of the schedule.
Surrey and Northants have already started drawing up contingency plans for spectators to be allowed under social distancing measures, a measure which would suit Sophia Gardens' spacious 15-thousand capacity stadium.
"That's one option, we're sharing information across the 18 counties and the MCC, and although it's a long way down the track, if we did get to a position where we were able to have crowds, we would have plans in place- contingent on government and ECB guidance," Morris told BBC Sport Wales.
The county is also considering whether to bid for staging games if they are played at "regional hubs" rather than opening up all 18 grounds.
Marnus Labuschagne scored five centuries for Glamorgan in 2019
Unlike the 17 English professional counties, Glamorgan have also had to deal with the Welsh Government separately to make sure their cause is not disadvantaged by differences in public health regulations across the border.
"We're on calls every week through the Welsh Sports Association with a number of different elite professional sports, we're discussing our individual situations and providing a collective view which the association is taking through to the Welsh Government," explained the former Glamorgan and England batsman.
Glamorgan's players and coaches, like those at 15 of the English counties, remain on furlough until there is a target return date for the county game, with the next round of talks in June likely to prove decisive for the sport this summer.
But the announcement of August and October fixtures for Australia is likely to remove any possibility that batsman Marnus Labuschagne will play for Glamorgan in 2020.