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Anderson praises West Indies for �scary� decision to tour

By The Assam Tribune

LONDON, June 11: England fast bowler James Anderson has praised the West Indies players for making a scary decision to travel to Britain for the three-Test series during the coronavirus pandemic.

While many islands on the Caribbean have been struck by fewer than 100 cases of COVID-19, the United Kingdom has been one of the world�s hardest-hit countries with more than 40,000 coronavirus deaths already registered. On Wednesday alone, there were 245 deaths and 1,003 cases recorded.

Lockdown restrictions are only being gradually eased in England, but the West Indies arrived on Tuesday for a tour in which the first Test doesn�t begin until July 8 under stringent health and safety protocols. The players, in quarantine in Manchester, will continue to be tested regularly and live, train and play in a secure environment.

Three West Indies players � Darren Bravo, Shimron Hetmyer and Keemo Paul turned down the chance to travel, though.

�It�s great for the game, brilliant, that we�re closing in on getting some Test cricket played after a decent layoff,� Anderson said on Thursday, referring to the shutdown of the international game since mid-March.

�From our point of view, we�re very grateful that the West Indies are coming over here. With what�s going on in the world, I can imagine it�s a scary decision for a lot of them, for all of them, to make the journey over.�

England�s tour of Sri Lanka was cut short in March because of the virus outbreak and the players will go into the series against West Indies without any competitive cricket behind them, which is especially problematic for the 37-year-old Anderson. � AP

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