Reports: BCCI urges ECB to reschedule Manchester Test, offer additional T20Is during India's 2022 tour

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has reportedly offered England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) two additional T20Is apart from the rescheduling of the recently-cancelled Manchester Test when India next tours England for a white-ball series in July 2022.

The fifth and final Test of the Pataudi Trophy had to be cancelled in the wake of Covid-19 cases emerging inside the visiting camp, where first Head Coach Ravi Shastri, bowling coach Bharat Arun and fielding coach R Sridhar tested positive before assistant physio Yogesh Parmar tested positive on the eve of the final encounter.

The cancellation of the fixture left many disappointed, while Lancashire is estimated to undergo losses to the tune of over 40 million pounds already as per early assessments after they announced a payback in full to all those who brought match tickets.

While the ECB has requested ICC’s Dispute Resolution Committee to adjudge the status of the encounter (cancelled or forfeited) to ensure the invocation of insurance policy, the BCCI has offered a tour expansion next year, when India is set to face England for three ODIs and as many T20Is as per the recently-released summer schedule by the ECB.

According to a BCCI official, citing anonymity, the proposal will not only “help ECB recover some losses” incurred but also “further strengthen” the relationship between both the Boards, a report in The Hindu stated.

Meanwhile, an ECB Spokesperson admitted to having urged the ICC to intervene. “Yes, we have written to the ICC,” he said. As per ICC’s rules, only if the Test match is abandoned would India take the series 2-1. In case the ICC adjudges the Manchester Test as forfeited, the series would be deemed 2-2.

Speaking over the same, ECB CEO Tom Harrison told Cricbuzz that said cancellation is not a COVID cancellation. “The match was cancelled because of serious concerns over the mental health and well-being of one of the teams and there is a difference… We have the ICC adjudicate over whether this series is completed now, whether that fifth match is null and void or whether it’s actually regarded as a forfeiture or something else.”