LONDON: Members of the West Indies and England squads knelt and held clenched fists as international cricket resumed after a four-month coronavirus shutdown on Wednesday.
England were 35/1 as only 82 minutes’ play was possible on a day marred by rain and bad light interruptions after weeks of glorious sunshine in Britain.
Before the start to the #RaiseTheBat series at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton, both teams announced they would wear the Black Lives Matter logo on the collars of the playing shirts.
They further demonstrated support with the gesture on the field and on the boundary. All members of the West Indies squad also wore black gloves. In addition, a flag was flown over the team’s balcony with the composite logos of Cricket West Indies and Black Lives Matter on the traditional maroon background.
England stand-in captain Ben Stokes, leading the side while Joe Root was on family duty following the birth of his second child, won the toss after bad weather meant the morning session was washed out.
The players gathered in a semi-circle on the pitch before play started to observe a minute’s silence in memory of the victims of the coronavirus and West Indies great Everton Weekes, who died last week at the age of 95.
They then dropped to one knee in support of the Black Lives Matter campaign following the death in the United States of George Floyd in May.
West Indies players wore black gloves on their right hands in an echo of the “Black Power” protests made famous by US athletes at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics.
