Alyssa Healy expresses disappointment as India pull out of the tour to England

Alyssa Healy, Australia wicket-keeper batter, joined the list of people who expressed their disappointment about the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s decision to pull out of India’s proposed tour to England in September. She believes it could be a set back for India’s preparation for the upcoming World Cup in New Zealand in 2021.



“Would be sad to see it not happen especially with the hope of a WC early next year....,” Healy tweeted on Friday (June 24).

Would be sad to see it not happen especially with the hope of a WC early next year...... https://t.co/VceZXolrOU

— Alyssa Healy (@ahealy77) July 24, 2020

India were scheduled to travel to England for a bi-lateral series in late June, but the tour was postponed in light of the restrictions imposed by the governments owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) were in talks with the BCCI to convert the series into a tri-series including South Africa in September, but the BCCI have taken the decision not to travel citing logistical issues.



Clare Connor, managing director of women’s cricket of England and Wales Cricket Board, expressed her disappointment while confirming to Women’s CricZone the news of series being cancelled.



“It’s disappointing (that India can’t travel) because we were excited to see this young, dynamic Indian team play. It was great to see them take the field at the MCG on International Women’s Day – okay, they didn’t have a great day – but it would have been brilliant for us to host that team in the tri-series,” Connor said.



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Meg Lanning, Australia captain, recently urged the International Cricket Council (ICC) to make sure all the participating teams get equal and adequate preparation if the 2021 World Cup were to ahead as per schedule.



“It is something the ICC will have to weigh up in whether the tournament goes ahead. Will every team in the competition have the opportunity to prepare adequately for a World Cup? There are still a few teams that have to go through the qualifying process so I’m not sure how that will pan out,” Lanning was quoted as saying.



England could still play the bilateral series against South Africa as originally planned. Australia is scheduled to play New Zealand in September at home. No announced was made regarding the India’s Future Tour Programs (FTP) or domestic season with the BCCI making no concrete decisions during last Apex Council meeting. There have been reports about the possibility of Women’s T20 Challenge not going ahead during the IPL play-offs which is scheduled to be played in November and it could clash with the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) window.