LONDON: The International Cricket Council (ICC) said on Wednesday it was still planning for the Twenty20 World Cup to take place in Australia this year but reiterated that contingency arrangements were being considered.

The tournament is scheduled to take place from Oct 18 to Nov 15 but is under threat due to novel coronavirus-related travel restrictions.

“The International Cricket Council board agreed to continue exploring a number of con­t­ingency plans regarding the future of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2020 and the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2021 [in New Zealand] until next month whilst planning for delivery of the events in the scheduled window is ongoing,” the ICC said in a statement.

The ICC said it was assessing and evaluating the rapidly changing public health situation caused by Covid-19.

ICC chief executive Manu Sawhney added: “The situation surrounding the global pandemic is evolving rapidly and we want to give ourselves the best possible opportunity to make the right decision for the whole sport.

“The health and well-being of everyone involved is our priority and other considerations fall out from that.

“We will only get one chance to make this decision and it needs to be the right one and as such we will continue to consult with our members, broadcasters, partners, governments and players and to ensure that we make a well-informed decision.”

Meanwhile, the ICC has said it will take a ‘common sense approach’ to on-field protests over the killing of George Floyd when the sport resumes next month.

Cricketers have joined other top sports stars in speaking out against racism and backing the Black Lives Matter campaign after the death of the 46-year-old African-American Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis.

The ICC has usually acted against players taking political stands. But it said in a statement: “The ICC stands against racism and is proud of the diversity of our sport.

“We support players using their platform to appropriately express their support for a more equitable society.

“We will exercise a common sense approach to the implementation of regulations in relation to this issue and they will be assessed on a case-by-case basis by the match officials.”

Kneeling has become a symbolic way for showing support for the Black Lives Matter campaign, but West Indies captain Jason Holder said his side will consider whether to take the knee when they start their three-Test tour in England in July.

England fast bowler Jofra Archer, who was racially abused by a fan during a Test against New Zealand in November, called on cricketers to make a stand in a recent column for the Daily Mail newspaper.

“As an individual, I’ve always been one for speaking out, especially if something bothers you. My personal view is that you should never keep things bottled up, because racism is not okay.”

The ICC has traditionally taken a conservative line on political gestures.

It forced India’s Mahendra Singh Dhoni to remove an army insignia from his wicket-keeping gloves at last year’s World Cup in England.

England all-rounder Moeen Ali was banned from wearing wristbands featuring the slogans ‘Save Gaza’ and ‘Free Palestine’ in 2014.

Published in Dawn, June 12th, 2020