England's Joe Root gears up for a 'tough winter'
England Test team captain Joe Root expects a tough winter to follow once the coronavirus pandemic ends. All sport has either been postponed or canceled in wake of the deadly virus which has claimed more than 37,000 lives globally. Root is worried with the amount of workload players will have to handle once cricket resumes. Here's more.
England could be up for back-to-back Test series
On March 13, England's Test tour of Sri Lanka was called off due to the growing threat of the the COVID-19 pandemic. The ECB confirmed that the aim is to reschedule the series. The decision came when England were playing their final four-day warm-up match. England are also set to play Pakistan and West Indies as part of the ICC World Test Championship.
We would have to be able to adapt, says Root
Root called for players to adapt in a testing period ahead. "It would be interesting to see how they would fit it in looking at the schedule as it right now but if it was to go ahead, we would have to be able to adapt, look at the squad sizes we take over and make sure guys weren't blown out and overworked."
It would be a very tough winter, says Root
"It would be a very tough winter, a huge amount of workload, especially on the multi-format players, but we have had some tough winters in the past and found ways to get through them," Root told the reporters via a conference call.
Professional cricket postponed, England players handed personalized training programmes
Earlier, the ECB announced that no professional cricket will take place in England and Wales till May 28. The ECB said it is working on a range of options to start the season in June, July or August. The ECB had an immediate focus on options for cricket in June. Meanwhile, England's men and women's centrally contracted cricketers were given personalized training programmes.
We have to be very open minded: Root
"If we are lucky enough to be in a position where we can play then we should try but whether Tests overpower other formats is going to be difficult to know. We have to be very open minded," the England skipper added.
