(Cricket News) Former England skipper and a modern day great, Joe Root has called out for a change in the domestic structure in England Cricket. Root wants a change in the county circuit to ensure that “players are safer” and the output of the games “is of a higher quality”.
England’s domestic tournaments, the likes of T20 Blast and County Championships has been reduced to a very small time frame available towards the beginning and end of the cricketing season. This problem has occurred since ‘The Hundred’ has came into being and is played during the months of July-August.
The tight domestic schedule is causing a lot of strain to the cricketers in the UK. Professional Cricketers’ Association’s (PCA) survey found that 81% of the men’s players are concerned about the physical strain from the schedule and the risk of injuries. The survey also concluded that 62% of players are worried about the schedule’s impact on mental health, while about 66% of PCA members feel there’s just too much domestic cricket.
No wonder the PCA called the domestic schedule “unfit for purpose” and a “disaster” in the making. Former England captain Root also offered his two cents on what exactly needs to change.
“I am extremely passionate about county cricket and it is apparent the schedule needs to change for a host of reasons to see long-lasting benefits for English cricket,” Root said. “County cricket is the breeding ground for some of the best talent in the game and this requires world leading structures to allow players to reach their full potential. This is a benefit for everybody in the game.
“We’re trying to find a way of getting the standard of first class cricket as close to the international game as we can.
“There’s a large number of players that don’t think the schedule is conducive to high level performance as it stands right now, we need to find a way of making that gap smaller and the product better,” said Root
“There’s so much cricket and there’s so much to cover. It’s not always going to be perfect, we know that, but if there’s any way of finding a middle ground and meeting somewhere closer to the middle where the players are safer and the output of the games is of a higher quality, then English cricket will be winning.
“Having space to recover, prepare and improve your game during the season is crucial and the creation of minimum standards to protect travel windows and player welfare is non-negotiable,” he added.
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