Adding Insult to Pakistan’s Climate Injuries

Pakistan players walk through flames at the first England women v Pakistan women’s T20 international, Edgbaston, Birmingham, 11th May 2024

How can English cricket allow 1,000 degree Celsius flames as Pakistan take the field?

How irresponsible can we be? Pakistan is home to the most glaciers in the world outside of the north and south poles, but glacial melting due to atmospheric heat is causing an increase in natural disasters, and it is suffering on the frontline of a warming planet. Incredibly, some parts of the country reached 52 degrees Celisus temperatures (125 degrees Fahrenheit) the past few days, and it is forecast to get worse. Their government has pleaded for help many times, and the proof of warming can be seen in this worrying ‘climate stripes’ history for Pakistan.

 Pakistan is not alone, as hundreds of temperature records were set across Asia in April & May 2024, nearly hitting 50 degrees Celsius in places, and it is likely to get more extreme if we carry on as we are. We know there are far worse things warming our planet than voluminous flames in the UK, but it is incredulous that something so obvious can be approved by those in charge. 

England women v Pakistan women’s T20 international, Edgbaston, Birmingham, 11th May 2024

Cricket is not the only sport releasing flames every weekend…

Just one example of many is rugby union…why did players have heat breaks at the 2023 World Cup in France? It was due to excessive heat, yet this past spring the Guiness Six Nations Rugby men’s & women’s matches had huge pre-match flames, as did televised Gallagher Premiership Rugby games. More recently, their Investec Champions Cup rugby matches also had flames, sadly ironic when children accompany players onto the pitch, and the final on 25th May 2024 required players to stop for heat breaks in each half. How is it that people don’t see the connection?   

England women v Pakistan women’s T20 international, at The County Ground, Northampton, 17th May 2024

A great question is to ask your friends, family, and colleagues if they know how hot a flame is. Then tell them to contact the organisations with oversight to these T20 events, to ask for leadership so other sports will follow. We cannot understand how 1,000 degrees Celcius flames can pass any sustainable or responsible analysis, please let them know if you are concerned, too. 

Vitality – The ECB’s T20 Title Partner, and a leading health and life insurance provider, Vitality sponsors several sports to encourage mass participation for good. They work with healthcare providers and hospitals, so they see firsthand damage of heatwaves on communities. Their Sustainability Approach includes ‘driving positive change’ and ‘the need for a healthy environment’, so why are they complicit with these flames? 

ECB – Thank you for all your good work, shown here: ECB Sustainability. But if flames are considered exciting or entertaining, please be creative to find an alternative, climate friendly solution. Even a small flame is 1,000 degrees Celsius, so how do large ones pulsating several times pass your sustainable test? 

These images are from the third England women v Pakistan women’s T20 international, Headingly, Leeds, 19th May 2024

Television – The T20 matches between England women and Pakistan women were broadcast on Sky Sports, whose sustainable page can be seen here: Sky Sports Zero. They have accomplished many things, yet they use images of the large pre-match flames in their advertising campaigns. They are not the only broadcaster to do this, and the mentality on promotional imaging needs to change, just like it did with tobacco.

Edgbaston, The County Ground, and Headingly – your sustainable teams or officers should review your risk assessment of the heat from flames, especially after the ‘Hit for Six’ report focusing on how warming temperatures are devastating cricket. Have you measured the temperature and volume of the flames? Have you considered the health & safety risk of an accident? 

UK – Government ministers should step in, as the UK is not immune to rising global temperatures, and is being hit with more large-scale fires. Sadly the Fire Brigades Union has recently warned that this will only get worse, and we are woefully underprepared to deal with them. 

England women v Pakistan women, T20 international, Headingly, Leeds, 19th May 2024

The Professional Cricketers Association - Created to support the lifelong health and wellbeing of PCA members and their immediate families. They have a Whistleblowing Policy  if players or staff wish to file an anonymous complaint about the flames.

Fans at live matches – You can feel the heat from most seats at cricket grounds, and nearly all seats in football or rugby grounds. How do you explain this waste of heat to children, in the midst of what they hear and see in the news about extreme heat?

On behalf of our planet and cricket’s future, there is no positive benefit of these flames, and they should be stopped. If multiple years in a row of rising temperatures on land and sea won’t make the people take notice, what will? And heaven forbid a flames related accident ever occurs to players, staff or fans in the ground, as that would be catastrophic.  

 Source for ‘Climate Stripes’ graphics and lead scientist: Ed Hawkins, National Centre for Atmospheric Science, University of Reading., National Centre for Atmospheric Science, UoR. https://showyourstripes.info/