Cricket association to look at ways to make global cricket calendar sustainable | Cricket News

The WCA has been calling on the ICC and its member countries for a number of years, through its annual report and player surveys, to have a cricket calendar that accommodates all formats in order to remain relevant. However, with no progress in sight, the WCA has formed its panel which will submit its report in the next four or five months with what it hopes will be a workable solution.

The committee, chaired by Paul Marsh, former president of the Australia Cricketers Association, includes former Pakistan women's national team captain Sana Mir, former FICA president Tony Irish, former ECB CEO Tom Harrison, former FIFA director of football regulation James Kitching and Disney Star head of sport Sanjog Gupta.

What has prompted this move is the ongoing frustration over the failure to create a coherent structure for our global game, WCA chairman Heath Mills told The Indian Express. All three formats are viable. We have international cricket and franchise leagues, which is great for the game, but there needs to be a better structure so that they don't compete with each other, Mills said.

Currently, apart from the IPL which has an international window for itself, Cricket South Africa has managed to find one for its SA20. Although their Test team toured New Zealand earlier this year when SA20 was in progress, it was a virtual second team consisting of players who were not part of the T20 competition.

Although the Big Bash League has been around for many years, it runs parallel to Australia's home international season.

Finding a window for every T20 competition would change international cricket dramatically as member boards would have to curtail their bilateral commitments. “We are in constant discussions with the ICC but we have sympathy with them because they have no control over it. It is the member boards that agree to play these series individually. But there is no doubt that the structure of cricket has a significant impact on international cricket,” Mills said.

Difficult choices

While some T20 leagues even run parallel to each other (BBL, SA20 and ILT20 run at the same time), it is the international matches scheduled in the same period that challenge players to make choices. Players would love to play in both leagues, but now they have to choose one. The T20 leagues (even if they run parallel) are great and people are engaged. They could compete with each other. But if everyone finds a window, there is no room for international cricket.

So what do we do? Play fewer internationals? We don't have the answers. We believe this review will help, Mills said.

The busy calendar is already leading to several top players from around the world turning down domestic contracts in favour of playing in T20 competitions. Ben Stokes, at the heart of Bazball, which is set to revolutionise Test cricket, turned down a three-year ECB deal last year. New Zealanders Kane Williamson, Lockie Ferguson and Devon Conway opted for fixed-term contracts rather than full contracts in order to play in franchise cricket.

With a majority of New Zealand players wanted in T20 competitions, there are already questions about their availability during their home summer. In the event that their board wants all their top players available for Test cricket, it is likely that they will play their home games either early in the summer (November) or towards the end (February-March). If not, their players will have to choose between international cricket and the three T20 competitions (BBL, SA20, ILT20).

The smaller boards are feeling the pinch. NZC has to work hard to get the balance right. There are more and more players who want to play on temporary contracts. If we can keep them to play for 7-8 months, that's the best possible outcome, said Mills, who is also CEO of the New Zealand Cricket Players Association.

To examine fan engagement and the economics of survival, the WCA included Gupta and Harrison, two individuals with broadcasting experience, on the assessment committee.

We brought Sanjog and Harmison in deliberately because they have experience. Any structure of the game has to consider the economics of the game. And we want to know what the fans are watching, what they are doing, what is profitable and what is not. So we need people in this group who understand the economics of it. Sanjog has a great understanding of it. He is going to ask some tough questions, Mills added.