XtraTime Web Desk: England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is mulling the option of potential resumption of cricket in England behind closed doors. In an interview to the Guardian, ECB’s director of events Steve Elworthy said “We’re mapping out what international matches would look like behind closed doors.” Alluding to the government’s initial advice prior to the current lockdown, he added: “The advice around mass gatherings was 500 people or fewer. “That was guided by the potential impact on critical services like paramedics and doctors. “You would likely have to work within that number [which would be made up of essential matchday staff]… then you have to think about medical provisions, creating a safe and sterile environment around that venue, so that everyone who comes in is clear. “So it’s how you test them at the gate, the isolation units that you have to put in. These are considerations we are thinking about.” However former England captain Michael Vaughan questioned the logic of extending behind-closed-doors cricket to domestic competitions such as The Hundred. Vaughan in his column for the Telegraph wrote, “The Hundred has been designed to bring in a new audience and if you are playing it behind closed doors, does that not defeat the point of it? “Clearly, delaying it 12 months would involve giving money back to Sky and the BBC. Perhaps the gap could be filled by showing the Blast instead (again assuming we can play cricket at all). “Or has the ECB spent so much money on The Hundred and run down its reserves, it just has to play it regardless? My guess is that is the case.” It will be interesting to see when international cricket resumes in England.

ECB mulling resumption of cricket behind closed doors with COVID-19 checkpoints