Weekly digest (April 20-26): From Federer's merger appeal to Eredivisie's premature termination

New Zealand legend Glenn Turner is concerned about the impact of T20 cricket on the “more worthwhile forms” of the game and feels that the coronavirus-forced break is a good time to “reassess” the future of the sport. The prospect of a five-Test series between Australia and India is gaining traction as cricket authorities contemplate ways of making up for lost time when the peak of the coronavirus pandemic has passed. Sporting bodies and leagues across the globe might have felt the impact of COVID-19 but Cricket South Africa has not yet reached a position of financial vulnerability due to the pandemic, CSA CEO Jacques Faul claimed. Premier League club Aston Villa’s players and coaches agreed to a 25 per cent wage deferral due to the coronavirus pandemic. Arsenal will be allowed to return to train at the London Colney base starting on Monday, a club spokesman said, while maintaining the British government’s guidelines to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Billie Jean King called for merger of the governing bodies of men's and women's tennis. The ATP and WTA, along with the International Tennis Federation and organizers of the four Grand Slams, are creating a coronavirus relief fund to help players affected by the sport’s shutdown. Team India coach Brett Clarke says the country needs to have its own centralised Training Centre like the ones in Germany, Portugal and Denmark to further improve on the global level. Indian men’s hockey team striker Simranjeet Singh feels the current lockdown presents the players a chance to study their previous matches and better analyse their games. The Badminton World Federation should start its tournament calendar only early next year given the current COVID-19 crisis, London Olympics quarterfinalist P. Kashyap has said.