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Cummins ready for IPL silent treatment

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10th April, 2020
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Pat Cummins admits playing international cricket without a crowd proved a weird and relaxed experience, but Australia’s spearhead is ready to embrace it and whatever else can help the sport resume.

Australia’s two-Test series in Bangladesh, scheduled to start on June 11, was postponed on Thursday because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Australia’s limited-overs tour of England in July is also at risk of being axed, while Cummins and other players are still waiting for an update on the Indian Premier League.

IPL organisers have already pushed the start of the tournament back to April 15 but a further delay, or cancellation, seems inevitable.

The prospect of playing the Twenty20 extravaganza, renowned for fanatical fans packing out stadiums as much as the lucrative contracts on offer to players, behind closed doors has also been floated.

“Whatever it takes to get cricket up and going and play these big events safely… if that means no crowds for a little while, that’s that and hopefully people can watch on TV,” Cummins told the BBC’s Stumped podcast.

“It’d be a totally different feel about it.

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“When people ask me about what makes playing cricket in India different, the first thing is the crowd. They scream every single ball. Whether it’s a dot ball, a six or a wicket – it’s the same noise.

“That atmosphere is something that we love about playing in India… but I’ve got no doubt it’ll be a great event if it has to be played without crowds.”

Cummins, who will miss out on a record-breaking IPL deal worth 155 million Indian rupees ($A3.2m) if the event is cancelled, suggested last week he is in a holding pattern and waiting to hear further updates.

That remains the case, with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) desperate to find alternative dates that could potentially work given the health crisis has essentially brought international travel to a halt.

Cummins featured in the trans-Tasman ODI that was played without spectators at a silent SCG in March, arrangements that may become the norm whenever matches are played again.

Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins

(Photo by SAEED KHAN/AFP via Getty Images)

“It was really weird. I felt super relaxed. It didn’t feel like an international match,” he said.

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“When you’re on the field (normally), you actually feel a little bit separate because you can’t communicate like you can if you’re playing for your state or even grade cricket.

“Whereas that game, you could shout out to Josh Hazlewood at deep fine leg and have a conversation with him.”

© AAP

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