England's 'The Hundred' likely to be delayed by a year due to Coronavirus outbreak

The coronavirus debacle has taken a toll on the whole world. The pandemic has spread its wrath across the globe and more than 1 lakh people have been affected by the life-threatening virus. All sporting events have also come to a standstill as they have either been cancelled or postponed in the wake of the pandemic. The much-awaited IPL 2020 has also been postponed indefinitely to tackle the spread of COVID-19.

Amid this stern atmosphere, England’s new tournament — The Hundred is likely to be affected due to the coronavirus pandemic. After BCCI took the decision to postpone the thirteenth edition of the Indian Premier League on April 15, the future of The Hundred also looks in jeopardy. At the time of the current world crisis, the Hundred is also in line to be put on hold.

England’s The Hundred– a 100ball franchise tournament– is set to commence from in July 2020. The league will comprise eight city-based teams– both men’s and women’s and ECB will be aiming to organize a world-class level tournament.

Simon Katich opens up on The Hundred’s future

However, according to reports, the tournament might get delayed. Many Australian players, who were set to participate in the tournament, will have to wait for a while for the tournament to commence. Steve Smith, David Warner, Mitchell Starc and Aaron Finch are among the Australian players who had signed up to be a part of the league.

As the UK has been also grappling with coronavirus outbreak, The Hundred is anticipated to be pushed further to 2021. So far, the UK has witnessed over 10,000 deaths due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Meanwhile, Simon Katich, one of five Australian head coaches in The Hundred, has revealed the possibility of the tournament getting delayed until next season.

Katich told SEN, “There has been a lot of speculation about The Hundred, given it’s a new tournament, that it probably doesn’t make sense for it to be played in front of empty stadiums if it was OK to play in that July window.”

“So there has been speculation about it potentially being delayed until next season. I’ve got no problem with that and I think a lot of people would think that’s probably the way to go if things keep tracking the way they are in the UK,” added Katich.