Mahela calls for single Twenty20 vision
Julian GUYER
Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene has said there should only be
one major Twenty20 cricket event a year so as to preserve a balance with
the Test game and ensure a fairer spread of the sport's riches.
Jayawardene, whose comments were published as the ICC board met in
Dubai with the future shape of the game one of the topics on the agenda,
was in no doubt about what should happen next
Authorities in India, world cricket's financial powerhouse, were
initially wary of the shortened format, which has proved popular with
fans around the world after being pioneered professionally in the
English county game.
But the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has since
embraced Twenty20 with the creation of the Indian Premier League (IPL),
a lucrative competition featuring the world's best players appearing for
franchise teams.
Now there are plans to expand the IPL and, in the meantime, English
cricket chiefs, alarmed about losing control over their own players,
have signed up to a million dollars a man winner-takes-all Twenty20
clash in Antigua in November against a Caribbean 'Superstars' side put
together by Texan-born billionaire Allen Stanford.
Next year will see the launch of the English Premier League (EPL) and
Jayawardene, a nominee for the International Cricket Council's cricketer
of the year award, due to be presented in Dubai on Wednesday, said the
feeding frenzy had to stop for the overall good of the global game.
"The important thing is that the boards don't compete with each
other," the batsman told the October edition of the Wisden Cricketer
magazine.
"The BCCI also needs to understand that we can't be playing four
Twenty20 tournaments in a year. What happens to other cricket around the
world then?
"Everyone's being driven by the money but you have to compromise and
start sharing the pot." Jayawardene, whose comments were published as
the ICC board met in Dubai with the future shape of the game one of the
topics on the agenda, was in no doubt about what should happen next.
"The way forward would be to have one big T20 tournament, whether that's
IPL, EPL or Stanford, and it will accommodate everyone's interests. "The
best players will play over a short period and the income generated can
be shared," the 31-year-old veteran of 98 Tests and 283 one-day
internationals explained.
Sri Lanka's senior players are currently in dispute with their board
over next year's hastily arranged tour of England, brought about by
England's decision to break off cricket relations with Zimbabwe.
Jayawardene said the row revolved around financial security for his
side which, for all the exciting cricket it often plays, is not
considered a big commercial draw by other nations.
"There's no compromise when it comes to playing for our country,"
said Jayawardene. "We put everything on the line but, regardless of how
well we play against England or Australia, we'll still get paid what we
get right now (about 2,500 pounds per Test and 1,500 pounds for a
one-day game). "But when we're given an opportunity like the IPL, it's a
chance to play six weeks of cricket and make the sort of money that the
rest of the world makes just by playing for their countries." Sri Lanka,
a small island nation plagued by civil war, have consistently punched
above their weight in international cricket but Jayawardene said a lack
of matches was restricting their progress in five-day Tests.
"I think we have only 10 Tests in the next three years. Out of that,
we're playing Bangladesh (Test cricket's weakest nation) home and away.
So where's our opportunity to climb up the ladder?".
LONDON, Thursday (AFP)
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