Pakistan's fringe cricketers fear big financial losses if county cricket gets cancelled

coronavirus pandemic has disrupted world and has brought an end to all sporting activities at moment. Cricket boards all around world have been affected by coronavirus crisis. England Cricket Board (ECB) is also one of boards who have taken a hit during se trying times. w, English domestic season is in great danger of being completely called off.

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Pakistan's domestic players set to incur huge financial losses

Over years, cricketers from around world have utilized English county cricket to t just learn more about game and be self-sufficient as a person, but also earn more with British pounds on offer. In modern times, one country which has players relying on it all more is Pakistan. A number of Pakistan cricketers are dependent on English season for ir incomes by playing cricket for various clubs and coaching m. And if season gets cancelled, it will hurt m financially since Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) does t offer m great incentives financially.

re are more than two dozen Pakistan cricketers who travel to UK for full seasons where y earn between £4,500 (₹4.22 lakh) and £15,000 ($14.03 lakh). se cricketers aren't a part of national set-up in Pakistan. Some of prominent names among se cricketers include Qaiser Abbas, Shahid Yousaf, Mansoor Amjad, Nayyar Abbas and Waqas Maqsood.

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While speaking to ESPNcricinfo, one of cricketers Mansoor Amjad said that for years, players like him who probably haven't got a future with national team, have been playing league cricket in England. Amjad added that it has been ir livelihood and with this coronavirus pandemic, y won't able to travel to England to fulfil ir contracts.

Amjad furr said that  number of players playing league cricket might have come down over years because of Pakistan's inconsistent domestic scheduling, but re are still over 30-40 cricketers making money from playing in UK. Amjad ackwledged that he kws this is a worldwide crisis and it's inevitable many will suffer from it too. He added that se are indeed testing times and also a learning curve for national board to understand importance of cricket for players' livelihoods.

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Amjad also said that re were so many players who lost ir job after new structure in PCB's new domestic cricket was introduced and w this pandemic took away ir alternatives too. He added that he doesn't kw what will happen next, but re are so many or young players who had been relying heavily on playing in se leagues and w y have thing eir at home or abroad.

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IM COURTESY: PTI