Queen Elizabeth II: England Cricket praised for tribute ahead of South Africa Test

Queen Elizabeth II’s passing on Thursday rocked the United Kingdom and many other countries around the globe, with the 96 year-old monarch working until the very end. All aspects of life in the country have been impacted by the death, including the sporting calendar.

It’s been no secret in the UK that upon the sorrowful news breaking that the Queen was no longer with us, a full itinerary of what to do was all planned out, dubbed Operation London Bridge.

With that, the country was set to go into an official mourning with sporting events postponed. Following the news, football over the course of this weekend was set to be cancelled as a remark of respect for Her Majesty.

However, with the decision being given to the sport itself on what to do during the mourning period, cricket amongst others have decided to go ahead.

Play was initially washed out with your typical UK weather in September ruining the deciding Test, with play then further suspended in honour of the Queen.

Today, they have decided to carry on the test match, with the two teams paying their respects to Her Majesty.

There was a consultation with DCMS and in line with Official Mourning Guidance, meaning that the decision to resume play was fully justified and not disrespectful.

Charles has succeeded his mother to throne, becoming the new King of England, with that comes a large upheaval, including the lyrics to the national anthem changing to signal the fact the country now has a king rather than a queen.

Before play, the first rendition of God Save The King was sung and it was spine-tingling, it was the first televised version of it at a sporting event in 70 years.

Soprano Laura Wright was tasked with the difficult task performing the national anthem at The