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ICC offers ball-shining advice: No saliva, use sweat instead

by Wisden Staff 2 minute read

The ICC Cricket Committee has given its recommendations for how international cricket should change to cope with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, suggesting teams should not use saliva for shining the cricket ball.

The committee, chaired by former India captain Anil Kumble, gave the advice after a conference call held to address the specific issues raised by the spread of the novel coronavirus. The recommendations will be presented to the ICC’s Chief Executive Committee for approval in early June.

The committee say that while shining the ball using saliva gives an elevated risk of infection, it is highly unlikely that the virus can be passed through sweat, and have therefore not prohibited the use of it for shining the ball. No recommendations were given on the use of artificial substances to help maintain the condition of the ball, though it had been reported they were considering such a move.

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