Ashley Giles: No contingencies if Pakistan tour called off but ECB will adapt

The ECB does not currently have contingency plans in place should Pakistan’s tour of England be cancelled, but will “adapt” as required, according to Ashley Giles.

10 members of Pakistan’s touring party have so far tested positive for Covid-19. While officials from both Pakistan and England have insisted the tour will go ahead as planned – the squad are expected to arrive within a week – the number of positive cases has inevitably raised concerns over the tour’s viability.

With several other international teams – Ireland and Australia, as well as Pakistan, while West Indies are already in Manchester – scheduled to arrive in England in the coming weeks, there could be some consideration given towards extending the limited-overs series against Ireland and Australia into Test series.

ALSO READ: Giles ‘concerned’ by Pakistan’s positive Covid-19 tests

Giles, the ECB’s managing director for men’s cricket, said there are no such plans at present. But he accepted they will “look at” the need for such measures if the Pakistan tour is cancelled.

“If the majority of the Pakistan squad are negative we would be hopeful they could be the advance party and carry on,” Giles said. “Perhaps other players would follow.

“We do not currently have a contingency plan. As has been the case throughout this situation, we have to be agile and adapt to these situations. We would look at that if that happened.”

The England squad arrived in Southampton on Tuesday to start their behind-closed-doors training programme. While the government announced a gradual easing of lockdown guidance on Monday, Giles suggested the squad would have to maintain much stricter standards. That will apply, in particular, to times when the team are allowed out of their ‘bubble’ to visit family. Joe Root, for example, is expected to leave the training camp to attend the birth of his second child.

“At some point we could have protocols within the bubble that are very, very different from protocols in the general population,” Giles said. “It is just about removing as much risk as we can.

“We could be in a situation where we have a very secure bubble during the second and third Tests of the series and the rest of the world is operating at a new normal – it’s not going to be totally normal – where restaurants and pubs are opening again. Our main responsibility is to get this series on the road and keeping everyone safe, especially including the West Indies team who have done so much to come here.

“We haven’t talked about banning players [from pubs and restaurants], but I think we ask them to be sensible and they have been throughout this whole process of the last three months.

“Anyone who thinks this is going to be holiday camp is going to be seriously mistaken. There could be an opportunity for the guys to play golf on the course next door. But apart from that and two sessions of cricket and some gym work, they will probably be spending a lot of time on your own and observing social distancing and the wearing of masks. It’s not a lot of fun and I think it is a bit of a culture shock.

“We are keen to get Joe back into the environment after the baby is born. It is very much about moving people from a safe environment to a safe environment. We need to do it with the cooperation of the West Indies team and the government and be sensible. We are all very aware that during the series we are going to have to find opportunities to get guys out of the environment and get them home.”

Giles accepted that the training environment would not be ideal in readying players for international cricket, but reasoned it was the same for both sides and that, once the series starts, the adrenaline will flow.

“It will be very difficult to replicate in training that same intensity you see in Test cricket,” he said. “Even going into a Test when there’s no crowds, that’s going to be very challenging

“But it’s the same for both sides. It’s the circumstances we face and there’s a bigger picture than perfect scenarios and being perfectly prepared. And that is the business of cricket around the world. It’s very important to everyone that we get back to playing Test cricket.

“I’m sure when it comes down to it that when someone is trying to knock your head off at 85-90mph you’ll find a way to get your intensity up pretty quickly, from experience.”

Meanwhile, Giles expressed his cautious optimism that Australia’s limited-overs tour to England – currently pencilled in for September – would go ahead and that England’s multi-format players, including Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer, could be available for the series.

“We had a really good conference call with them last week,” he said. “Australia have been one of our strongest partners for years and it continues that way. It would be great to have them here.

“Clearly if you were an Australian cricketer or member of staff out looking in at the moment, there would be some nervousness. But we are doing everything to allay as many of those fears as we possibly can to get them to the country.

“Again September is a long way away right now and a lot could change in that time. But are we confident? Yes, quietly confident. But there’s a lot of water to pass under the bridge yet.”

Giles also offered his support for the return of domestic cricket, though he did not commit to which formats might be played.

ALSO READ: Counties won’t face sanctions if they fall under salary collar

“Ultimately we are here to play cricket,” he said. “If there is an opportunity to play cricket we should take it but we have to do it in a way that is within the guidelines and safe. So, it’s important we have cricket whatever that cricket looks like.

“The priority is getting cricket on for these players some in the last year of their contracts – about 130 of them – and cricket on that can be viewed if not in the ground then on TV or live streams. We feel like we are moving towards a place where we are going to see some [county] cricket.”