The letter was signed by MCA secretary Sanjay Naik and joint secretary Shahalam Shaikh. (Representational)

When can we start playing cricket as “thousands of players are anxiously waiting to resume careers”? That’s the question the Mumbai Cricket Association has asked the Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray in a letter seeking clarity and guidelines during the pandemic.

“There are thousands of players who are anxiously waiting to get back to cricketing activities and pursue their careers,” the letter read. “They (players) have been patiently waiting for this pandemic to get over. However, it seems that we have to learn to live with the virus.”

In a letter sent to Chief Minister on Friday, signed by MCA secretary Sanjay Naik and joint secretary Shahalam Shaikh, the state association has requested the state government to issue standard operating procedures alongwith further directions.

The Mumbai Cricket Association is the governing body for cricket in Greater Mumbai, Thane, Kharghar, and Palghar district. Since March, they have stopped all cricketing activities due to the pandemic.

“As the governing body for cricket we have followed all the directions/notifications of the government and will continue to do so in the future,” the letter stated.

In its letter, the MCA stated that the association supported all the initiatives taken by the government towards combating the pandemic and have also contributed to the Chief Minister’s fund as a way of showing support. They now want clarity about the near future.

“In these unprecedented times, we request you to kindly provide us some guidelines/ standard operating procedures regarding getting back to cricket. We intend to keep all the players informed … We would greatly appreciate if you could provide us with the necessary direction as to when and how we can resume cricketing activities.”