Nasser Hussain defends easing of restrictions amid Covid-19 'chaos' in ECB

Former England captain Nasser Hussain has said that the emergence of Covid-19 cases in the England team will create ‘chaos’ in the England and Wales Cricket ranks as they have to pull players out of ongoing County Championship fixtures and get them tested before shifting them in a biosecure bubble.

"It will cause chaos. They will have to pick a completely different squad- that 16 players and the backroom staff and coaches ruled out. They will have to pull the bulk of those players out of county cricket. There's a round of County Championship games going on now and all those counties will have to replace those players and get them tested. The players pulled out will have to get to Cardiff and get tested to enter the bubble. So it will be absolute chaos at ECB towers right now," Hussain told Sky Sports.

However, Hussain defended the move to relax the biosecure provisions keeping in mind the mental well being of the players who have been dealing with one bubble to another for the last year.

"They had to ease that bubble slightly, the cricketers have been going around the world in bubbles and just for the sake of their mental health - when they turn up to the ground and see normal society out there, doing things and being relaxed slightly. That's what they had to do with their players," Hussain said.

As many as seven members of the England squad that played and took part in the series against Sri Lanka tested positive for the novel Coronavirus infection. This included three players and four support staff while others have been deemed ‘close contacts’ and been forced into isolation.

England selected a completely revamped ODI squad for the upcoming series against Pakistan with Ben Stokes coming back from injury to lead the side that has as many as nine uncapped players.

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Not thinking ahead of myself, first target is IPL’s second leg: Natarajan on T20 World Cup

India quick bowler T Natarajan feels that the suspension of the Indian Premier League has turned out to be a good thing for him personally as he has not missed out on much. "The fact that the IPL got suspended when it did has turned out to be a good thing in the end. None of it was in my hands of course,” Natarajan told Indian Express in an interview. The Salem born, currently rehabilitating at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore, feels that he is gaining back momentum slowly and is progressing well. "I am progressing well after the surgery. I have started training slowly. I will start bowling at full tilt in the nets by the end of this month. My focus right now is on recovering fully and returning by the time the IPL restarts," said the 30-year-old who made his debut for India in December last year. Asked about his plans for the upcoming T20 World Cup, Natarajan said that he is not thinking ahead of himself as of now. But the Sunrisers Hyderabad player did say that his first focus is playing the IPL in Uae, scheduled for September this year. "I am not thinking about the T20 World Cup right now. I am thinking more about my recovery. If I do well in the IPL, the chance to be selected for the T20 World Cup will come on its own. That is my belief. But for that, my recovery needs to be spot on,” he said.

Bubble to bubble transfer on cards for Sri Lanka players returning from England: Report

The Sri Lanka players who were there on the tour of England will enter another biosecure bubble upon arrival in the country, PTI reported citing a Sri Lanka Cricket official. The report further said that players went through a round of RT PCR test in the UK before they boarded the flight back home and they will enter the next bubble only after another round of Covid-19 testing. “The Sri Lankan team will reach Colombo today itself and enter another bubble after one round of RT PCR test. Even after completion of tour on Sunday, the team had an RT PCR test in UK before boarding the flight,” a Sri Lanka Cricket official told PTI. “Since the India series is starting in a week no one is going home. It’s bubble to bubble transfer. However if anyone tests positive, usual protocol of testing and isolation would follow,” he added. The issue got contentious as three England players and four support staff have tested positive for Covid-19 after conclusion of the series against Sri Lanka. India under the leadership of Shikhar Dhawan, and coach Rahul Dravid are staying put in Colombo for a three-match ODI and an equally longer T20I series. The first ODI of the series will be played in Colombo on July 13.

England name squad with 9 uncapped players to face Pakistan after Covid-19 crisis in camp

England have named a completely new 18-men squad for the ODI series against Pakistan after the entire squad that played the series Sri Lanka was forced into isolation due to Covid-19. The squad has as many as nine uncapped players, the ECB said in its statement while the likes of James Vince, Jake Ball, Saqib Mahmood have made their comebacks into the England ODI side. All-rounder Ben Stokes, who injured his hand in the IPL earlier this year has made his way back into the side as the captain while the head coach Chris Silverwood who was supposed to take a break will be the head coach of the side. "We're in unprecedented territory, in terms of replacing an entire squad and management team, and I'm very proud of how everyone has come together in order to get it done - both those within the ECB and from the county game,” Ashley Giles, Managing Director of England Men's Cricket said in a statement. "It's a great opportunity to play on the biggest stage, and for most of the players selected it's not necessarily something they would have been expecting 24 hours ago.” England squad Ben Stokes (C), Jake Ball, Dan Lawrence, Saqib Mahmood, Dawid Malan, Craig Overton, Matt Parkinson, David Payne, Phil Salt, John Simpson, James Vince, Danny Briggs, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Lewis Gregory, Tom Helm, Will Jacks

Suryakumar Yadav promises same old approach against 'completely different challenge' in Sri Lanka

With the well-established batsmen of the Indian white-ball sides being in England for the Test series, the upcoming series against Sri Lanka offers a near perfect opportunity for players such as Suryakumar Yadav to press forward their claims in the side. Yadav has been a prolific run-getter in the Indian domestic cricket but he rose through the ranks on the back of the bulk of runs for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL. He has formed a formidable batting lineup of Mumbai that never relents attacking the opposition bowler and so far Yadav has not shied away from unleashing the same pattern in his short international career. Now, as Yadav is eyeing a probably long stint with the Indian side, he is all but ready to do what he has been doing best with the bat. He has said that the approach of his batting will be very similar to what it has been and it won’t be dependent on his batting position against Sri Lanka. “I think I have been doing the same thing that I have been doing for my franchise back in the IPL. Even in my debut series, I did not do anything different. I have been enjoying that (attacking) role really well in whatever position they tell me to bat. I will stay the same. I will just go out there and express myself like I always do. I enjoy doing that,” Yadav said from Colombo, where the India side is putting up for the series. He started his T20 career with a characteristic six off Jofra Archer and stamped his authority on the game with crisp timing and immaculate placements. He hit a berserk fifty against England on debut and followed with another substantive score to help India clinch the series. However, he said that the series against Sri Lanka will be a different proposition and he will look forward to starting from scratch. He conceded the pressure of expectations he brings with himself but expressed confidence in using it to his own and India’s good effect. "I think that was a completely different challenge. Like for a batter, every time you go in or play a different game, you start from scratch. So this also I've to start from zero. This is a different series, but the challenge remains the same - I've to go out and perform the same way I did. So the pressure will be there because if there's no pressure, there's no fun. It'll be a great challenge and I am really looking forward to it,” Yadav added. Yadav also downplayed the inexperience in the India squad in the backdrop of comments made by Sri Lanka’s world-cup winning captain Arjuna Ranatunga, who had called the Shikhar Dhawan-led side a ‘second-string’ Indian team. Yadav said that the team is not bothered about outside opinion and that their goal from the series is to take away positives and play series with the right spirit. "Not really [thinking about it]," Suryakumar said. "Everyone is completely focused. The way the practice sessions are going, the way the game went yesterday, it's going completely fine and we're really excited about the challenge. We're not thinking about that. We're just here to have some fun, enjoy this series completely and take a lot of positives from here,” Yadav added. The ODI series between India and Sri Lanka will commence on July 13 in Colombo and the rest of other ODIs and a subsequent T20 series too will be played in Colombo only.