Indoor cricket could be key to a brighter summer next year says ex-Lancashire star Karl Brown

Brown works for Cheadle Hulme School as senior cricket coach and has also agreed to captain Liverpool Competition side Leigh CC – a club only a lofted cover drive away from his home.

The 2020 summer programme for schools and leagues has been decimated.

Schools across the country are closed, while the ECB has suspended league cricket indefinitely following Government advice.

A batsman in Lancashire’s County Championship-winning side of 2011, Atherton-born Brown said: “It’s something we’re looking into at the moment at school and how we might have to change what the winter programme would usually look like.

“It’s all dependent on social distancing and things like that.

“We’d usually do quite a lot of one-to-one sessions from September, leading up to Christmas. Then we go into group pre-season training.

“But with the kids not getting any cricket, we might have to look at the possibility of organising indoor tournaments to try to get the competitive element into their game because I think just coming back into purely nets and training would be quite difficult.

“There is the possibility of some September matches outside. That would be the ideal scenario. I hope we can make it happen.”

Brown made his first-class debut in 2006 and was a Red Rose player for 12 years. He has since captained Lancashire League side Accrington.

He played for Leigh when he could during his Lancashire years and would love to return for them outdoors later this summer if possible, but indoors this winter would be second-best.

“If we don’t play any cricket this summer I would definitely be open to it,” he said.

“The Bolton League do it already with their sides just before the start of the season.

“In the Liverpool Comp, it would maybe have to be more regional because there is a lot of travelling across that competition.

“It’s not ideal but I can definitely see it happening.”

The Liverpool Competition has not run an indoor winter competition since 2018 but is looking into resurrecting one.

Looking further ahead, towards the summer of 2021, Brown is confident that schools’ programmes and league clubs can make a quick recovery and thrive once more.

“It’s obviously going to have a big impact immediately but we can look at it positively in the future,” he said.

“When this is all said and done, people will be desperate to get out there.

“If we don’t get out there and play cricket this summer, you would think everyone is going to want to play next year.

“Hopefully it will have a good effect on numbers participation-wise.

“Negatively, you can’t get away from the financial impact. But fingers crossed there will be loads of players who want to play, including kids.”

At present, Brown remains busy. Away from his remote interaction with the pupils at Cheadle Hulme, he has welcomed a newborn baby into the household and is maintaining fitness – even if he can’t use Leigh’s Beech Walk ground to run laps of the outfield or push the pram.

“The ground’s locked up, so I can see it but can’t get on it!” he added.

“Luckily we’ve got Pennington Flash nearby, which is great for running and stuff like that, so I’ve been able to get out there and run about.”