S
stephen cartwright
Guest
Yorkshire chairman and chief executive Colin Graves says the county will not bid to host an Ashes Test in 2013 or 2015 because it would represent too great a financial risk.
The White Rose county revealed a £2million loss for 2010 on Thursday, a figure which was contributed to by the poor attendance for the Pakistan v Australia Test at Headingley last summer.
Yorkshire have a staging agreement with the England and Wales Cricket Board that guarantees them one Test and a one-day international each year between 2012 and 2019, but counties have to bid for the right to host Ashes matches.
And Graves, who succeeded Stewart Regan as chief executive, says the cost of bidding for a Test against England's traditional foes would be a major risk.
He told the Yorkshire Post: "There's no chance at all of us hosting an Ashes Test.
"For 2013 and 2015 we are not allocated an Ashes Test, we won't be allocated one, and we are not going to bid for one to put ourselves at risk again.
"The figure is not fixed but it could cost anything between £1million and £2million to make a bid.
"I'm not putting between £1million and £2million at risk because it's not worth it. I'd rather stick with what we've got."
The White Rose county revealed a £2million loss for 2010 on Thursday, a figure which was contributed to by the poor attendance for the Pakistan v Australia Test at Headingley last summer.
Yorkshire have a staging agreement with the England and Wales Cricket Board that guarantees them one Test and a one-day international each year between 2012 and 2019, but counties have to bid for the right to host Ashes matches.
And Graves, who succeeded Stewart Regan as chief executive, says the cost of bidding for a Test against England's traditional foes would be a major risk.
He told the Yorkshire Post: "There's no chance at all of us hosting an Ashes Test.
"For 2013 and 2015 we are not allocated an Ashes Test, we won't be allocated one, and we are not going to bid for one to put ourselves at risk again.
"The figure is not fixed but it could cost anything between £1million and £2million to make a bid.
"I'm not putting between £1million and £2million at risk because it's not worth it. I'd rather stick with what we've got."