The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has cancelled contracts of the players who were due to participate in the inaugural edition of 'The Hundred' which was pushed to next year due to the coronavirus pandemic. The new 100-balls-per-side format, to be played by eight teams in separate men's and women's tournaments, was scheduled to be held between July 17 and August 15 but had to be postponed because of the pandemic.

A weighted ball would also pre-empt any ball-tampering, Warne said.

With the coronavirus outbreak forcing a cricket shutdown across the world, there is speculation that the sport might initially return without fans. The global health crisis has forced England and Wales Cricket Board to suspend all professional sport till July 1 in the country and also put in doubt the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia. Buttler said he is hoping for some form of cricket to return this year.

Ravi Shastri has a firm belief that that the team of 1985 was qualitatively better than the side that won the 1983 World Cup because it was a perfect blend of youth and experience.

'The game which I loved the most, it was taken away.'

India's Test vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane said cricketers will need at least a month of training before resumption of competitive games, which should happen only after a vaccine for the dreaded coronavirus is discovered. Rahane also said that in a coronavirus-scarred world, the lifestyle of cricketers will undergo a change as far as pre and post-match routines are concerned.

Kolkata Knight Riders CEO Venky Mysore did not entirely rule out the possibility of the popular IPL franchise "evaluating" investment opportunities in England and Wales Cricket Board's ambitious franchise league 'The Hundred', which had to be shelved this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. British newspaper The Telegraph on Tuesday quoted Mysore saying that they would surely be keen to "explore" investment opportunities in The Hundred.

The batting resources of West Indies' 'intimidating' team has reduced Dwayne Bravo's role to a specialist bowler.

Former Pakistan leg-spinner Mushtaq Ahmed feels the categorisation of Test and limited overs spinners is the need of the hour. According to Mushtaq, skill-wise, Lyon and Ashwin are on par with greats like Saqlain Mushtaq and Muttiah Muralitharan but not best suited for the one-day game.

Pakistan head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq said being confined to home due to the coronavirus-forced lockdown can become depressing and wants some cricket activities to resume soon even if the matches have to take place behind closed doors with proper safety barriers. Misbah said he would love to see some cricket activities resume at the international level and has no problems in playing in empty stadiums.

A cricket museum based in India has bought a bat auctioned by Pakistan Test captain Azhar Ali to raise funds for the needy during the coronavirus pandemic. He confirmed that Blades of Glory Cricket Museum based in Pune bought the bat by making a winning offer of Rs. 1 million for the bat.

Umar Akmal was provisionally suspended on the eve of the Pakistan Super League. He did not seem prepared to show remorse nor did he seek an apology for failing to report corrupt approaches.

India's batting great Sachin Tendulkar on Friday recalled his stint for English county club Yorkshire as a 19-year-old in 1992, which he says helped in gaining exposure and improved his game. Tendulkar created history by becoming Yorkshire's first overseas player.

Should the much-anticipated series goes ahead as scheduled with the COVID-19 pandemic being brought under control in the best case scenario, run-machines Steve Smith and David Warner's presence will put the hosts at an advantage.

All cricketing activity has come to a halt due to the health crisis and there are serious doubts over the future of T20 World Cup. However, the International Cricket Council is yet to take the final call on the T20 showpiece event.

England Test captain Joe Root is keen to play international cricket this summer but not by compromising on quality of the game or its intensity, the 29-year-old has said. With professional cricket suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is considering playing the series against West Indies and Pakistan behind closed doors.

Sporting activities, including cricket, are currently shut due to the coronavirus-forced lockdown but Alex Carey is in no mood to let dust settle in his skills and has been working towards that in this break.

Playing against India behind closed doors in the much-anticipated Test series at the end of the year might end up being an advantage for the home side, according to Australia batsman Usman Khawaja. Cricket Australia are desperate for the tour, scheduled for December and January, to go ahead as the lucrative Indian TV rights for the series would go a long way to easing a financial crisis triggered by the coronavirus pandemic.

Former India captain and coach Anil Kumble compared the fight against the dreaded coronavirus pandemic to the "second innings" of an intense Test match where people can't afford to let their guard down. The coronavirus outbreak has wreaked havoc across the world, claiming over 2,76,000 lives so far while infecting more than four million people.

A small portion of the estimated ₹10,000 crore AT1 bonds issued by the bank are also held by individual investors.Many of the investors are guilty of believing that the bonds are as safe as FDs and will give better returns

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Becker backed the idea of merging the ATP and the WTA and said the ongoing pause is an opportunity for the sport's stakeholders to work together.

Roger Federer called for a merger between the two governing bodies last month, with both Simon and ATP Tour Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi welcoming the suggestion. But some top WTA players have said they want an equal standing for the women players in a combined body.

Next year's Australian Open could be cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic and even if the first Grand Slam of 2021 goes ahead fans from abroad will not be able to attend, Tennis Australia chief Craig Tiley said on Wednesday. The tennis season was halted in early March due to the spread of the novel coronavirus, which has infected more than 3.68 million people around the world while killing over 256,000 so far.

In March, Dybala confirmed he and his girlfriend, Oriana Sabatini, tested positive for coronavirus.

The French professional league (LFP) ended its season last week with 10 games left, awarding the title to Paris St Germain and leaving Lyon outside the placings for European competition next season.

South Korea's K League will have a profile it has never enjoyed before when the delayed 2020 season kicks off in Jeonju on Friday, providing top-flight soccer action to a world starved of live sport. Broadcasters from 10 countries, mostly in Asia and Europe, have bought rights for the season and Friday's match will be streamed live with English commentary on the league's Twitter feed and YouTube.

Professional soccer leagues around Europe are gearing up for a return to action following the novel coronavirus stoppage, but some are more advanced than others.

Viswanathan Anand was in Germany to play in the Bundesliga chess and before he could return, the travel restrictions came calling in wake of the pandemic.

The Bundesliga season will restart on May 16 after a suspension of more than two months, the German Football League (DFL) said on Thursday, becoming the first European league to resume amid the coronavirus pandemic. The DFL said the season would restart under the terms of a strict health protocol that bans fans from the stadium, with six games on Saturday, including the high-profile Ruhr valley derby between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke 04.

A number of football leagues around the globe will resume after the COVID-19 stoppage in the coming weeks but the matches will be played without fans.

K-League season started on Friday with a match between Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors and Suwon Samsung Bluewings played without spectators