Photo feature
Virus stops cricket
It's been a year since the coronavirus pandemic forced cricket to a standstill
It's been a year since the coronavirus pandemic forced cricket to a standstill
The last international match played before the pandemic-induced lockdowns
Matt King / © Getty Images
On March 13, 2020, Australia and New Zealand played the first ODI of a three-match series in an empty Sydney Cricket Ground. It had been announced that morning that spectators would not be allowed into the ground, and players had to deal with the unusual experience of facing remotely operated cameras for interviews and climbing into the stands to fetch the ball themselves. The coronavirus was making its presence felt across the world and cricket was not immune.
England batter Tammy Beaumont makes do with a makeshift net in her garden
Matthew Lewis / © Getty Images
The rest of the Australia-New Zealand matches, and other series across the world, were cancelled or postponed as countries began to go into lockdown. Stuck at home for an uncertain amount of time, players started improvising on how to stay match fit (when they were not making Tik-Tok videos or interviewing each other on Instagram live).
Surrey's Amar Virdi (right) cooks food in a Southall kitchen to feed the homeless
Richard Heathcote / © Getty Images
Some players were out on the streets, feeding vulnerable people who didn't have access to other support systems.
A game on a deserted beach in Mumbai
Rajanish Kakade / © Associated Press
A small upside of everyday life coming to a standstill was all the space freed up for occasional games of cricket - particularly in the populous Indian subcontinent.
Friendly neighbours of the Wookey Hole Cricket Club swing by to help the ground staff
Michael Steele / © Getty Images
In the absence of lawnmowers, and people to operate them, cricket grounds occasionally turned into hangout spaces for sheep.
Jason Holder and Ben Stokes talk to the TV commentators through a remotely operated camera
© Getty Images
International cricket returned in July when West Indies toured England in a summer that looked very different from those of the past.
Josh Hazlewood gets a neck rub to collect sweat with which to shine the ball
David Gray / © AFP/Getty Images
Cricket was now played with a set of new protocols and parlance - biosecure bubbles, Covid tests, tracking apps, quarantines, no saliva, no spectators.
Peter Siddle exercises on a stationary bike in his hotel room during a period of quarantine
Ryan Pierse / © Getty Images
Bio-bubbles have largely made it safe to conduct cricket events during a pandemic, but the extended periods of quarantine and time spent away from family have been mentally taxing for many players. On the positive side, even teams previously reluctant to address the problem of high workload are now actively working on rotating their squads. To an extent, it has also normalised conversations around mental illness in cricket.
Fans enjoy cricket and the sun at the Basin Reserve, Wellington
Marty Melville / © AFP/Getty Images
After so many months of lockdown for most of us, it was a bit odd (and envy-inducing) to see crowds in Australia and New Zealand, where the pandemic did not gain as much of a foothold as it did elsewhere around the world.
Spectators mix entertainment with safety when arriving for the SCG Test between India and Australia
Brook Mitchell / © Getty Images
PPE kits as fancy dress at the cricket? Only in 2020 (and maybe 2021).
A dog and its humans enjoy a match in North Devon's Valley of Rocks
Jed Leicester / © Getty Images
In other parts of the world, keen spectators took social distancing a little too seriously perhaps.
A man wears a mask featuring MS Dhoni and other Chennai Super Kings players
Arun Sankar / © AFP/Getty Images
But there are some pandemic-related things we'll continue to see in the game (and elsewhere) for some more time.
Spectators at the SCG make sure their hands are clean
Saeed Khan / © AFP/Getty Images
With all the sanitiser around, perhaps players could use it instead of saliva to shine the ball?
Sydney Thunder and Hobart Hurricanes' players greet each other at the end of their WBBL game
Mark Metcalfe / © Getty Images
Boxing's contribution to the world at large, the fist bump, looks set to be around for a while.
Shaun Marsh has his documents inspected at Perth airport after taking a flight from Adelaide
Paul Kane / © Getty Images
We've seen a return to the days of extended tours, with time set aside for quarantines and warm-up games.
The South Africa-England tour was called off in December following an outbreak of Covid-19 among both teams
© Gallo Images/Getty Images
And of course, a great number of tours have been cancelled or postponed because of outbreaks.
Dom Bess with his parents' dog, Tilly, in Shipton, Yorkshire
Stu Forster / © Getty Images
With all the time they had on their hands in 2020, cricketers around the world got to cuddle up to their pets a whole lot more than they usually do.
Nishi Narayanan is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.