London: The Covid-19 pandemic has affected the rules of cricket and it has titled the game in favour of the batsman as the bowlers are now not allowed to use saliva to shine the ball. Many cricketers are expressing their strong opinion on the issue but England's Test captain Joe Root has said that the ban won't make much of a difference in England considering the existing conditions in and how the Duke ball reacts to them.
England are set to take on West Indies in three Test matches starting on July 8. The matches will be played in bio-secure environments and the new rules implemented by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for the resumption of cricket amidst the coronavirus pandemic.
"Don't think it would change too much in England," said Root.
"It depends on the conditions. There has not been too much cricket played so the squares and the outfield will be really lush so the damage to the Duke ball really doesn't take effect until the 40th or 50th over if that is the case so there should be enough swing. They normally stay hard longer than the Kookaburra or the SG balls.
"So I can't see it having as much of an impact especially at the start of the summer. Ultimately it's going to be the same for both sides and it has to be managed by both teams."
The ban on saliva has been widely debated since it was first mooted. There have been demands of allowing a substitute to maintain the shine on one side of the ball which the ICC later refused to allow. Root feels that the difference won't be too big and it was a necessary step.
"There is no saliva for a reason -- it is to keep everyone safe and it might play towards the batsman's advantage slightly but it is going to be the same for both sides," he said.
"I suppose it is about how skilful can you be at using different things, whether it be getting lateral movement off the seam, the spinners come into play a little bit more.
"Or whether to find different ways of getting wickets whether it be by creating pressure and forcing batsmen to mistakes. There are lots of ways of thinking about it and we will be exploring leading into the game."
Root also said that the fast bowlers are practising in the nets without saliva but they will get to know the real effects only when they play the matches.
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Great day out for pitch practice in Manchester! #ENGvWI #MenInMaroon #WIReady pic.twitter.com/FOmAKwwzp8
— Windies Cricket (@windiescricket) June 17, 2020 " class="align-text-top noRightClick twitterSection" data="
">Great day out for pitch practice in Manchester! #ENGvWI #MenInMaroon #WIReady pic.twitter.com/FOmAKwwzp8
— Windies Cricket (@windiescricket) June 17, 2020Great day out for pitch practice in Manchester! #ENGvWI #MenInMaroon #WIReady pic.twitter.com/FOmAKwwzp8
— Windies Cricket (@windiescricket) June 17, 2020
"The guys are actually practising really hard without saliva, seeing how it plays out and whether there is any deterioration. But we will really know only when we start playing the matches. It might be different in different grounds or have a bigger effect in the second innings," he said.
