IN 2022, international cricket made its much-anticipated, full-fledged return to Pakistan. Aust­ra­lia arrived in March for their first tour since 1998, followed by England and New Zealand, close to the end of the year.

It was a bonanza for cricket fans in the country; but those in Lahore, hit by the seasonal winter smog that continues to intensify each year, missed out on watching Ben Stokes’ England and Kane Willi­amson’s New Zealand in action.

Lahore has become a no-go area for cricket in winter due to its poor visibility and air quality. England and Pakistan, however, were still eng­ulfed by smog in the second Test in Multan, a venue chosen over Lahore to escape the phenomenon.

Multan doesn’t see as much smog as Lahore, but last year there were other factors at play. The devastating floods that ravaged the country hadn’t dispersed from south Punjab. The standing floodwater evaporated in the mornings, contributing to the dense smog. It was also stubble-burning season, where large tracts of land are set on fire after harvest to clear fields for the next crop.

While global sporting bodies tout efforts to ‘offset’ emissions from events like world cups, Olympics, etc. through tree-plantation drives, experts say this is not their remit

The blazing morning sun did burn down the haze before noon, but the Pakistan Cricket Board was taking no chances and subsequently shifted the second Test between Pakistan and New Zealand from Multan to Karachi, where the sea breeze prevents smog from building up.

A year earlier, at the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, the marathons were run in Sapporo, 1,000km north of the Japanese capital, due to heat concerns for athletes. A typhoon that made landfall during the Games also forced organisers to reschedule rowing and surfing events.

For the Winter Olympics in 2010, 2014 and 2022, artificial snow was needed on the tracks. Grand Slam tennis events are also seeing heat-induced retirements each year.

‘Pressing need to adapt’

By now, it should be obvious to anyone that climate change, more than ever before, is impacting sport worldwide.

Peter Frankopan, a professor of Global History at Oxford Univer­sity and an ardent cricket fan, has been speaking for years about the challenges facing the game due to the climate crisis. For him, there is a pressing need to adapt.

“Cricket is the ball sport most affected by climate change — partly because of the countries it is played in, partly because of the length of games; even ODIs take the best part of eight hours,” Mr Frankopan, author of The Earth Transformed, told Dawn.

“Players and spectators alike can be exposed to full blazing sun for hours, days even on end, with little or no shade. And then of course there is air quality too, which is not just a problem for cricket or sport, but for all of us everywhere on earth.”

“The answer, though, is the same for cricket as it is for life as a whole: we need to re-think things, we need to change how we do things, and we need to adapt.”

Adaptation is key in times of such crisis. The International Olympic Commit­tee (IOC) and global football body Fifa have been leading the debate on the impact of climate change on sport.

Click to see more

The IOC and local organisers have been publishing environmental and carbon audits for all Games held in the last two decades, while Fifa has conducted carbon audits of the last four men’s World Cups.

“The IOC has been a leader in getting sporting world to talk about climate change, pressuring international federations into signing the United Na­­tions Sports for Climate Action Fra­me­work,” seasoned British sports writer and broadcaster David Mr Goldblatt, a lea­ding voice on the relationship between sport and climate change, told Dawn.

Mr Goldblatt, the chairman of the Foot­ball for Future initiative, noted that Fifa was the first sports organisation to join the UN Climate Change secretariat’s Climate Neutral Now initiative.

The IOC too has taken these steps. It has made it mandatory for all local organising committees for the Olympics from 2030 onwards to “and compensate their direct, as well as indirect, carbon emissions; and implement lasting zero-carbon solutions for the Olympic Games and beyond”.

Offsetting vs preventing

But this is not hardly enough. Both Fifa and the IOC are mainly offsetting their greenhouse gas emissions. The IOC in 2020 announced it would create an Olympic Forest as part of its contribution to the UN-backed Great Green Wall Project in the Sahara and Sahel.

“I don’t think that the IOC is the right organisation to be doing that,” notes Mr Goldblatt.

The ICC, in contrast, is yet to become a signatory to the UN framework. Mr Frankopan argues that not enough is being done at the moment to primarily safeguard player health. Other things, he believes, have to come later.

“Signing up to plans is all well and good,” he said. “But I’d rather ask what are the international and national policies around climate action environmental concerns. What are the standards for making cricket carbon neutral; what are the base-line targets for using renewable materials at cricket grounds for food, beverages and lighting; what are the standards for energy generation at international grounds — and at first class level; under what conditions should games not be allowed to take place?”

“These are all serious and existential [questions]. The risk comes… when one picks individual matches or locations. I’ve been in the smog in Lahore, as well as in poor air in London; so this is not just about one game or one tournament.”

“I now know a lot about the damage to health from particulates — but it has taken me a lot of time and effort to educate myself. I think players should have the benefit of that education and be informed about the consequences and risks they face when they take the field. That is not currently happening.”

Some sports, like tennis, have taken action, allowing for more breaks during matches at times of extreme heat. But the crowded calendar of sporting events and broadcasting commitments mean that this remains the only solution for now. But as more and more sport takes place around the world, and tournaments are expanded to grow the game, the bigger question surrounds the impact of such spectacles on the world’s climate.

Fifa under fire

Fifa is especially under fire for expanding the World Cup to 48 teams from 32 for the 2026 edition. There has also been criticism over its decision to hold the 2030 edition in six countries — three nations in South America alongside Morocco, Por­tugal and Spain, halfway across the world.

With fans flying to 104 games, experts say it will increase the tournament’s carbon footprint. Fifa, which has committed to a 50pc reduction in carbon emissions by 2030 and achieving net zero by 2040, has said it will take measures to “mitigate the environmental impact”.

Climate activists have spoken about the fact that when big tournaments are held, people fly in from all over the world with most emissions coming from flights.

“Fifa isn’t thinking about the consequences of air travel,” said Mr Goldblatt. “Despite dubious claims by airline companies, there is no sustainable air travel. The carbon footprint of the World Cup or Olympics is travel and mostly it’s the fans rather than teams.”

“Fifa could’ve said ‘OK, we’re not going to have more games, more teams’. But it has done the opposite of it. There will be more emissions in the United States in 2026 due to air travel. Then you have the 2030 tournament with a game each in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay before it heads to Spain, Portugal and Morocco.”

Hurting ‘cricket lovers’ the most

“As someone who really loves cricket, even I think there is just too much,” opined Mr Frankopan.

“I heard a commentator say during the World Cup that England bowler Mark Wood had spent a total of 14 days at home this year. That is not healthy or good for anyone, for their friends, families, relationships etc.”

The author also questions whether players continue to play amid rapidly deteriorating climatic conditions.

“My question is not just about viability; it’s about whether it is appropriate for international teams that provide thrills for commentators and spectators to come and entertain in the wake of disaster,” added Mr Frankopan.

“My answer is not a simple no: look at the positive that was done by the England team’s visit to Pakistan last year in the wake of the floods: the three Tests and the manner in which they were played provided hope and escape for the millions who had been affected.

“Sport can be a healer, after all. But it is absolutely correct that the countries where cricket is played are all at the sharp end of climate change — the four Test playing nations in South Asia and the West Indies too.”

“But no one is safe: we have seen devastating droughts, floods and storms in Australia and New Zealand and even here in England, we’ve seen summer temperatures at 40C.”

“So one answer is whether cricket in the northern hemisphere becomes a spring and autumn sport, rather than a summer one; or whether it becomes a night game, whose viability has now been proved by the IPL and others.”

A detailed version of this article can be accessed on Dawn.com

Published in Dawn, December 10th, 2023