SLC confident England tour will go ahead

Sri Lanka Cricket is confident that international cricket will resume in the country by January next year with SLC set to host England for two Test matches. The two Tests, part of the World Test Championship, were set to be played in March this year but the tour had to be postponed after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic. England had been in Sri Lanka for around ten days when they were forced to return home ahead of the opening Test match in Galle.

It was expected that international cricket will return to the island this month as Bangladesh were set to play three Tests. However, there was dispute about the days the tourists would do quarantine and the series was once again postponed.

There is a two week mandatory quarantine period for those who come into the country. While England and Wales Cricket Board is unlikely to agree to this measure, SLC is confident of getting a shorter quarantine period.

“Ideally, what we are looking at is one week’s quarantine and then get the players and support staff into a bubble and let them resume training. I am pretty sure we would be able to work out something like that,’ an official privy to negotiations told The Island.

“We will discuss the matter with Health Ministry when the time is right. This is not the time to approach them for obvious reasons,” he added.

Originally, England were set to play the two Tests in Galle and Colombo but now Dambulla has been earmarked as the venue for both Tests.

SLC will book an entire hotel and accommodate both teams, match officials and others involved in the series putting everyone in a bubble.

This means Dambulla will become Sri Lanka’s latest Test cricket venue. The popular cricket ground has only hosted one-dayers since it was built in in 2001. Incidentally, England played the first game at this venue.

What this also means is that there will be no international cricket played in Sri Lanka in 2020. This year SLC was set to host India, South Africa and Bangladesh apart from England. They were also set to host the Asia Cup. All those tours have now been postponed.

Sri Lanka are set to tour South Africa in December but officials said that it is unlikely this tour will take place.