Replacements for injury or illness will now only be permitted in the first innings for both teams – unless the match referee has been notified that a player is undergoing an injury or illness assessment – and the like-for-like stipulation will only apply to skillset, rather than ability or experience.
Tweaks to the system have now been announced for the final six rounds of the County Championshop, which will resume in August, following feedback from the PCCs and PCA. The changes have been approved by the ECB board, and were supported by the Cricket Advisory Group (CAG) and Professional Game Committee (PGC).
Concussion substitutes and replacements for players experiencing a significant life event will continue to be available throughout the duration of the match.
In a statement, the ECB said: “Having taken on board this feedback from the first nine rounds of the Rothesay County Championship, the change from an injury or illness replacement being available throughout the match required, and has received, ECB board approval.
“Both the Cricket Advisory Group (CAG) and Professional Game Committee (PGC) were supportive of that change, which is designed to address any concerns that a team could gain advantage by being able to bring on a fresh bowler for their second bowling innings.
“The CAG and PGC also recommended the basis on which the match referee would approve a replacement player. This will not take into account the relative quality, experience or record of the player being replaced and the replacement player. It will be based on skillset only, for example a quick bowler for a quick bowler or a batter for a batter.
“It was also concluded that mid-season changes would not compromise the integrity of the Rothesay County Championship, given all teams have played the same number of matches until now and will be playing in all the remaining rounds still to come from the competition’s resumption in August.
“The ECB will assess the full results of the trial at the end of the season, including seeking further feedback from stakeholders including professional counties and the PCA, before considering next steps.”
