Fuzzy Future

Mumbai: Former New Zealand batsman Lou Vincent said last year that playing for his country wasn’t fetching him enough money to run a family. A survey conducted by the Professional Cricketers Association (PCA) in England seems to support his sentiment. It found out that more than 80 per cent players were ready to quit country for club or Twenty20 cricket.

The enormous success of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has forced many players to realign their priority. Suddenly mercenary cricketers, who put playing for money ahead of national honour, are sprouting like mushrooms all over.

Reason is not far to seek, as the international calendar will have to deal with scores of new Tweny20 leagues in the next few years – IPL, P20 in England, Southern Premier League (SPL) involving South Africa, Australia and New Zealand and Champions League. Interestingly, all the leagues will be put in place by official cricketing bodies of the numerous countries. To make matters worse, one more unofficial league, American Professional League (APL) will soon join the Indian Cricket League (ICL). Already it has caused enough stir for the ICC to start ‘considering’ a window for the IPL.

So are we going to see a trend where cricketers prefer to play for their club over their national team? Should a player be allowed to choose club / franchise ahead of country? Will there be takers for such players?

Players’ viewpoint

“Players have been allowed to make their choices ever since the game has been played. Hence it would only be apt if players of the modern era are allowed to make their choices,” told Tim May, CEO of Federation of International Cricketers' Associations (FICA), to Cricketnirvana.

“We are not saying give up Test cricket because even now players tell us that they take utmost pride in playing the purest form the game. However, there is need for a change.

“All we are saying is that something got to give. We are at a stage of cricket evolution wherein it is difficult to pinpoint on what exactly. It could be the end of 50-overs cricket and a lot of bilateral series and tournaments that occur a little too regularly. Eventually, it would ideally be just Tests and Twenty20 leagues, besides World Cups,” said May.

“I will do anything to play Test cricket. The IPL is a great platform but personally for me Test cricket is the only thing that matters. Sure I may come across as a flamboyant guy who fits into the T20 mode of things but I have realised the value of the Test format,” S. Sreesanth tells Cricketnirvana.

“I am not saying anything against IPL. It is a fantastic platform and sure it gets the good bucks in. But credibility lies in playing Test cricket and I want to take at least 150 or 200 wickets for my country.

“There are lots of international cricketers I know who are considering quitting country for club. But we in India do not want to speak up or turn against the board. We will do what the board says,” said Sreesanth.

When the Chris Gayle outburst occurred in England last month, West Indies Players Association (WIPA) chief Dinanath Ramnarine blamed ‘greedy boards’ for the scenario. “It is easy for the cricketers to get chastised by the media and everybody else ... but one thing you don't hear is what the governing bodies have earned,” told the former leg-spinner a leading cricket website.

Administrators’ viewpoint

IPL’s Vice-Chairman Niranjan Shah has criticised May’s views and will oppose FICA’s appeal to the ICC. “We, the BCCI, strictly condemn and oppose the views of the FICA. We have always disapproved the FICA and they are not a member of the BCCI. The BCCI believes that every player’s primary objective is to play for his country,” Shah told Cricketnirvana.

Shah further elaborated that early retirement for the sake of playing IPL is strictly out of the question due to the cooling period. “No Indian player can retire early to take part in the IPL because there is a cooling period of two years. The IPL is not for individuals. It is the greater power of our country and it is a way to showcase all of India’s talent. Besides, each player has to get a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from his respective cricket board to play in the IPL, so there is no question of turning your back on a board and join the IPL.”

May counters Shah by saying, “I am aware of the cooling period that’s in place by the IPL governing body. Legally, there isn’t anything that must prevent players from joining these leagues. If you stop them from joining IPL they will go and join some unofficial league. Nobody wants that.”

ICC President Haroon Lorgat is optimistic about international teams holding on its players. “Players still aspire to play for their national team. I know the financial rewards are not the same, but the fact of the matter is that I hear a lot of players talk about they want to play for their country,” the South African told a leading cricket website.

“There would be some who would prefer or enjoy making the best financial rewards, and there are others who will want a balance between what they make in terms of a good reward and representing their countries,” a hopeful Lorgat says.

England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) Director of Communications, Collin Gibson said the ECB are still working on finer points for the inaugural season of the P20, which gets underway in England next summer.

“We are still putting together the rules and regulations for the P20. We are looking at ensuring a balance, so that England players are still duly prepared for Test matches and other international events,” Gibson told Cricketnirvana.

Advertisers’ viewpoint

“Money and advertisements lie where the interests are. In this country club cricket can never overtake international cricket. If Modi and his ilk feel that fans will turnout in millions to watch a game between Chennai and Delhi, they are fooling themselves,” Ad Guru Prahlad Kakkar tells Cricketnirvana.

“A player who decides to solely play for his IPL franchise but ditches his country will never get any advertisements. It’s not got anything to do with patriotic spirit but purely because the player who plays for India gets more eyeballs. With every eye ball comes more money and thus the advertisements become more expensive.”

Over ambitious international players cannot go ahead and join IPL without getting an NOC from their respective countries or counties. So, all the talk about ‘IPL over country’ takes a backseat immediately. There is a stringent procedure in place.

“There are two types of players – the capped and the uncapped. The capped ones have to take a NOC from the boards and the uncapped need to do the same from their respective counties. We, as a franchise, cannot do much to persuade or accept a player,” said an executive of the Mumbai Indians under the condition of anonymity to Cricketnirvana.

“These players who want to part ways with their country can join ICL or any other unofficial league but cannot join us until they are cleared to do so,” he elaborated.

Fear factor

“One thing is for certain – the ICC and cricket boards around the world would lose a lot of top-class players if some of these existing directives do not change. None of us want to see great players stop playing for their respective countries. This is the time for the ICC to take brisk action,” said May while expressing his fear.

The Twenty20 uprising has already begun to raise its head. May and Sreesanth are of the opinion that a pack of international players are already waiting to jump the ship. However, the hurdles that await these players are still vague. Eventually, it may sort itself out but the question remains at what expense? 

---

Stay tuned to this space for further details of the new Twenty20 leagues emerging around the world.