Recreational cricket's return: Infectious disease expert Sir Jeremy Farrar explains what's safe and what's not

The amateur game is free to take place in England from July 11 but cricketers remain unsure how to make sure they are able to play while protecting themselves against the spread of Covid. The Cricketer asked SAGE member Sir Jeremy for advice...

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As recreational cricket prepares to resume after getting the green light from government, many amateur players are wondering how to safely pick up the sport they love.

The Cricketer has spoken to Sir Jeremy Farrar, one of the world’s foremost infectious disease experts and a member of the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) about the risks posed by club cricket’s return and what participants can do to mitigate those dangers.

The Cricketer: What would your advice be to club cricketers ahead of the game’s return?

Sir Jeremy Farrar: If anybody doesn’t feel well, the threshold for saying ‘I can’t play this weekend has to be much lower than normal. If somebody has a cough, a fever, loss of smell/taste or doesn’t feel well - or if somebody knows someone who’s had Covid recently and has had contact with them - they should excuse themselves from playing.

We all know this infection can be transmitted by people before they get symptoms, and even by people with no symptoms at all. If you feel in any way unwell or you have been in contact with someone who has had Covid, excuse yourself from playing.

You don’t want to put your teammates or the opposition at risk. Don’t play if in any doubt is the most important piece of advice.

The Cricketer: How should clubs be approaching the return of the recreational game?

Sir Jeremy Farrar: Think through the whole process, from starting at home to getting back home again: what can we do to reduce the risks and make it safe for everybody. The last thing we want is for sport to be shut down again because there is evidence that sport restarting again has been a focus of mini epidemics.”

^{Infectious disease expert Sir Jeremy Farrar has answered our questions}

The Cricketer: Where should we get ready for the game?

Sir Jeremy Farrar: It does mean changing at home rather than at the ground. 

The Cricketer: What about teas?

Sir Jeremy Farrar: Sharing teas in a pavilion shouldn’t be happening. 

The Cricketer: Should players share kit?

Sir Jeremy Farrar: Sharing equipment is important and I do appreciate that many clubs do have to share equipment but I would strongly advise not to.

The equipment most at risk: firstly, it would be helmets. That will be difficult because a lot of clubs will share helmets but they would be the highest risk. Gloves and bats are also higher risks - you touch them with your hands, your hands touch your nose and mouth, and the rubber handle of the bat is somewhere where the virus could persist. Pads are less of a risk, but if possible don’t share. 

Overall, if you can reduce the amount of sharing of any kit, the better.

The Cricketer: What should clubs do to mitigate risk during play?

Sir Jeremy Farrar: Having hand gel behind the stumps and players using that liberally during the game - after every over, perhaps - and not spitting on the ball is important.

No mass celebrations when a wicket falls or someone does something spectacular - the high fives and the shaking of hands should not happen.

Slips shouldn’t be touching each other but given it’s outdoors and that the government advice is now one metre plus, field positions shouldn’t be a risk. That goes to the whole issue of why it’s safer to play cricket ahead of other sports.

The Cricketer: What about the batsmen? 

Sir Jeremy Farrar: The batsman that’s backing up should probably step further away from the umpire: you wouldn’t want to be standing right next to the umpire for the full five minutes or so that an over might take and chatting to them throughout the game. Step another metre to the side and distance yourself a bit.

A lot of umpires, in many forms of the game, are more senior and you don’t want to be a young batsman standing half a metre away for a series of overs.

The Cricketer: Is it okay for the wicketkeeper to be stood up to the stumps?

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Sir Jeremy Farrar: I would suggest the wicketkeeper, if they are standing up to spinners, walks away from that area between balls and then comes back so you’re not standing for over after over and never moving from that spot.

Take yourself away from the batsmen between overs. Trying to keep, where possible, that metre-plus distance in a sensible way is what cricketers should do.

The Cricketer: How should the ball be returned to the bowler?

Sir Jeremy Farrar: The ball should go through as few hands as possible to get back to the bowler. It can go straight from the wicketkeeper back to the bowler, that’s the most sensible route, not passing it through the fielders at cover and mid-off.

Try to reduce the amount of contact. The risky areas are people’s hands and their contact with noses and mouths, that’s the area where the virus will be found. Anything you can do to reduce the contact with the ball the better, but I don’t think the ball is going to be the major issue here.

It’ll be more people’s contact with each other, or sharing of equipment. But being outside in the fresh air, keeping your distance at 1m+, washing hands regularly, not sharing of kit and cricket can be safe and enjoyed again.

The Cricketer: How much danger does sweat pose?

Sir Jeremy Farrar: It’s theoretically possible there could be the virus in your sweat but it would be tiny compared to the other (areas, such as the nose and throat). It’s not so much the sweat that’s the issue, it’s that when you sweat you clear your forehead and then touch your nose and throat, then the kit, the ball or someone else. 

Government guidance relating to the return of recreational sport, and the measures clubs need to put in place, can be found by clicking here