Cricket is back, but it’s not the same without supporters!
1 Sep 2020
Cricket is back, but it’s not the same without supporters!
Nine months ago during the test series in South Africa, I received a WhatsApp video of a woman pouring Corona beer down the sink. At the time I didn’t know what joke was about. As it turned out it wasn’t a joke but very real, I was oblivious to the news. The only news I looked for was sports related. Anything of real relevance would had have caught my attention but at the time no one on tour mentioned it! A couple of weeks after being back I was due to fly to Sri Lanka, on the Friday England walked off the pitch and flew home and the trip was finally cancelled on the morning I was due to fly.
In the last five Months the pandemic has caused chaos, millions of businesses around the world going out of business, thousands being unemployed and thousands dying through this awful virus! We lost a friend who travelled with us many time s and had been with us in Cape Town just a few weeks earlier. I guess we all know someone who has died, and our thoughts go out to those that have lost loved ones this way.
Fast forward to September things are beginning to open up, sports are being played globally without spectators and we are all hoping that soon we can go and watch some form of sport. We have seen some brilliant cricket on TV and huge credit must go to those behind the scenes and the England players. Credit to the West Indies and Pakistan teams for coming over and putting on some great cricket that lifted everyone, to put on such a show without a crowd must be very strange for international players.
My life has been very different, I have been going for long walks, doing the odd job at home and lots of cooking, surfing the channels trying to find something of interest that will keep us entertained during these unprecedented times -probably similar story to most people. It has been difficult for us, but we are over the worst and will come through the other side, I would like to thank all the well wishers who have sent messages and phoned us with support, it means a lot to us, and just shows how many cannot wait to go back on tour!
A couple of weeks ago we went to Amsterdam on a recce for the ODIs being played there next year in May. We were there for two nights and put lots of work into visiting hotels, the ground and seeking out real ale for the ever growing enthusiasts who prefer an ale to a lager! We had a great time, roaming around Amsterdam on a canal boat and walking around eating ice cream enjoying the glorious weather and the sites of this diverse city. We have been busy taking bookings for Holland, and several calls from those wishing to book Ashes! Even though we don’t even have the dates yet. We expect Ashes to be huge, only the other day they showed Ben Stokes heroic innings against the Aussies at Headingley, a year to the day. I was watching thinking….. look at the crowd being enthralled by such exciting cricket….. with the odds of winning swaying one way then the other, and thinking….if that doesn’t wet the appetite nothing will!
There have been mentions in the press of the test tour to India and the cancelled Sri Lanka tour being pencilled in for early next year, as yet we don’t have any news but tourism is big business for any country. I’m sure Sri Lanka will want supporters to come over, so let’s just hope for some good news in the coming months.
We have recently caught up with a few friends from various tours and we have also heard that others have done the same which is lovely. We hope to see more of you in the coming months as we have, for once, got plenty of time for socialising in UK! Obviously any news that comes to us regarding new tours, we will of course let you know. I’m sure all the Cricket organisations and the ICC will try and rearrange tours that were cancelled and hopefully allow supporters in – overseas cricket grounds dont usually have a problem with social distancing – we can each have 3 seats!
All I can say is stay safe and keep in touch, we have a great cricket family, at least we can keep in touch with one another!
