Cricket news: War in the Middle East causing crisis in England, Dukes cricket ball shortage

England is facing a crisis as the war in the Middle East continues to cause turmoil across the globe.

With the cricket season just around the corner, the country is staring down the barrel of a major cricket ball shortage that could cause serious headaches.

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Dukes are used for all first-class and Test cricket in England and between 4,000 and 5,000 are needed for a home season.

While the balls are made using British leather and undergo a tanning process in Chesterfield, they are sent to Asia to be stitched.

The finished balls are then flown back to the UK via The Gulf, which is where the issue arises.

Owner of Dukes, Dilip Jajodia, has warned that the conflict that is unfolding in the Middle East will be a “major crisis” for the upcoming season due to logjams and soaring freight costs.

“We have a major crisis right now with this bloody Gulf War nonsense,” Jajodia told the Daily Mail.

“We’ve got to ration clubs by giving them 50 per cent of their balls at the start of the season and then manage the problem.

‘We have plenty of stuff in the factories in the subcontinent ready to go, but the airlines are not taking the freight, because there’s a logjam.

“The rates have gone up, too. A box of 120 cricket balls would be charged normally by airlines at about $5 a kilo. The last quote I got was $15 a kilo.

“Most of the stuff goes through the Middle East but, if you’ve suddenly got rockets flying around, you’ve got a major problem.”

Cricket chiefs on the England Cricket Board have however dismissed the claims, insisting they have more than enough cricket balls to get through without interruption.

“The professional county clubs have received the number of Dukes balls that they normally would ahead of the season,” an ECB spokesman said.

The ECB say they buy balls in bulk on behalf of the counties to keep costs down and the balls they need at this stage of the year have already arrived.

Cricket in England isn’t the only sport that has been impacted by the ongoing war with Formula 1 forced to cancel races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

The two races were officially cancelled last weekend, leaving the F1 calendar with no races in the month of April.

“After careful evaluations, due to the ongoing situation in the Middle East region, the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix will not take place in April,” F1 said in a statement.

“While several alternatives were considered, it was ultimately decided that no substitutions will be made in April.

“The Formula 2, Formula 3 and F1 ACADEMY rounds will also not take place during their scheduled times.

“The decision has been taken in full consultation with the FIA and respective promoters.”

The races are amongst the most lucrative Grands Prix on the calendar for Formula One with the organisation set to miss out on the massive fees from the nations, with Bahrain paying in the region of $78 million for their event, and Saudi Arabia paying as much as $117 million.

F1 is set to return to the Middle East region for two races in Qatar (November 30) and the season ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (December 7).

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