Having short-version of County Championship doesn’t make sense, believes Alastair Cook

COVID-19 has brought entire nations to a screeching halt. Nearly every single sporting event across the globe has either been called-off or postponed indefinitely. In the UK, where the virus has infected at least 17,000 people, killing more than 1,000, the decision remains whether or not all cricket for the remainder of the season be called-off. 

The County Championship, which was due to begin on April 12, will face the lengthiest delay as ECB CEO Tom Harrison clarified that the more financially lucrative formats would be prioritised once the battle against the virus is over. This means that the T20 Blast and the inaugural season of The Hundred take the top spot as the most likely competitions to be retained, with a shortened version of the County Championship still possible in a slimmed-down schedule. However, Cook, who won the Division One title with Essex last season, does not agree with this plan.

“In this year, over the next six months, the bigger picture is the most important. Whatever happens, if we do play any sort of cricket, which hopefully we will, what I hope is that they don't try and have a six-game County Championship or something like that. I would rather have one or two full tournaments because if you do then play that tournament or two tournaments it is so much more rewarding to win it. If there is no time for a meaningful County Championship, say (you can only play) three or four games, there is probably not much sense us having it,” Cook told the BBC.