The players and staff involved in the inaugural edition of the Hundred have been urged to avoid shops, pubs and restaurants during the competition as the organisers seek to curb the spread of COVID-19. The UK government is set to relax its COVID-19 restrictions on Monday. However, the provisions surrounding cases, which require the close contacts of a person who tested positive to self-isolate for 10 days - will continue until August 16. Two positive cases, including that of star wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant, were detected in the Indian camp ahead of their practice game in Durham, while England had to field a back squad in the series against Pakistan after finding multiple positive cases in the squad. The Hundred is slated to begin with with the women's fixture on July 2, followed by the men's match a day later.

Source: The Hindu July 17, 2021 16:07 UTC