The 2013 county season will probably start in February
We know it, you know it, even the bloke who cleans Giles Clarke’s office knows it. Everyone knows there’s too much domestic cricket in England; everyone, apparently, except the ECB.
The schedule for the 2012 county season was announced today – and it’s the earliest start to the English summer since WG Grace picked up a bat and said ‘bowl at me, you filthy commoner’.
The traditional curtain raiser between the county champions and the MCC will begin on 27th March, with the first round of county championship matches set to start on 5th April – a time of year when spring has yet to arrive in many parts of the country, let alone summer.
Let’s hope snow doesn’t delay play at some of the most northern grounds.
However, perhaps we’re not giving the ECB enough credit. Maybe they aren’t money focussed suits who couldn’t give two hoots if the season starts before older county stalwarts have recovered from the last one. It’s possible that they’re actually brave visionaries with a blueprint that will revolutionise the game we all love …
Cricket has been a summer sport since the dawn of time; well, since its invention in the sixteenth century anyway. During the colder months of the year, it takes a back seat whilst sportsmen wearing shorts kick a pig’s bladder around a pitch.
Perhaps the ECB plan to revive cricket’s popularity by making it an all year round sport? It might just work. Snow and ice creates a natural sightscreen for a red ball, so why not?!
With the county season starting in March, and the CB40 final scheduled for 15th September – yes, that useless competition in which teams play forty overs a side, thus ensuring that young English players won’t play a single 50 over game until they make their ODI debut, is back again next year – the 2012 domestic season is set to last six months (a period that spans three calendar seasons).
Surely the scheduling of matches during winter is the next (il)logical step?
James Morgan
5 April? Are they mad? Surely outfields will be too wet and grass not fully grown and stable by then, unless we have a spring like 2011 (which you can guarantee we won’t). ECB must be potty. April is usually freezing cold, wet, the football season still has 6 weeks or so to run, club cricket doesnt begin at the earliest till mid-April (apart from a few hardy souls in Suffolk etc). Potty…
It’s far too early to start, no question
But we often find in September that the weather is better once the season has finished. (We went to the beach in October this year)
Why not start later but if the season needs to be extended then finish later.