England batsman Jason Roy’s recent decision to give up his central contract with the England Cricket Board is being seen as a watershed moment in the history of the game. West Indians have been doing a similar thing for over a decade and Trent Boult did the same a couple of months ago but, one of the ‘big three’ countries…
I recently made the following comment in another forum about the IPL. "Last season I was still paying attention but this year I've lost interest in this constant barrage of tiktok cricket. T20 is an exciting format but when it overwhelms everything else, all these games start blending into a sameness that's become a yawn."
I live in a country where it takes effort to watch cricket. I have a subscription with Willow TV and also ESPN Plus which has given me access to more than enough cricket. However, it's been quite a few months since I've logged into the cricket feeds. With the move away from cable TV to various subscription services one has to start prioritizing what subscriptions you want to have. At this stage cricket might have to go although I'll probably keep ESPN for other sports.
I feel strangely detached from cricket after being a lifelong fan and player in my younger days. I will stick to following your newsletter and read ESPNcricinfo.
I love the photo of Santorini. I was lucky enough to live in Greece for almost five years. Some of best years of my life. I heard they had a cricket ground on Corfu. I was hoping to get a chance to turn my arm over there one day but unfortunately it didn't happen.
A couple of days after Santorini I was in Corfu and saw the cricket ground! Took photos, too. It has a single astroturf pitch and the outfield is longer and thicker than Forrest Gump's beard at the end of the movie. But it's a cricket venue, nonetheless.
I think you need to be personally invested (emotionally or financially) in Franchise cricket for it to hold anything other than a passing interest, no matter how thrilling the games are - and there were many in this year's IPL. I watched several of them (professionally compelled) and I couldn't remember the result an hour after writing a match report, never mind the following morning. I'll just have to try harder...
Not only is there too much cricket, there is too much sport worldwide.
If I recall my aerodynamics, as the angle of attack is increased, so is lift. Good.
But only up to a point - eventually the wing will stall and that is not good. Recovery action is needed. Now, why do I think of that is apposite to your welcome article?
What we (and the sponsors and media and advertisers) need are more days in the year.
The old saying that 'a rising tide raises all boats' has been used a few times to describe the current economic climate in international cricket. It's true that every nation will receive 'more' income than before but it's impossible to pretend that the game can remain 'balanced' with the future model with the BCCI receiving 38% of global revenue with ECB and CA around 5% and scraps for everyone else. Around 95 Associate members will share scraps - growing the game is fantastic, but there's no point planting seeds if you don't water them!
One thing I can't understand about these annual franchise contracts, is how do the franchises sign a player when that player has to have individual contracts for each tournament? If they sign a player today, but then the CPL has a draft in July, and then the MLS has another draft next year etc... how can the franchises know they can get that player?
All these tournaments would have different contract cycles, different contract rules, different salary caps, different salary cap rules. As it stands today, I just can't see how any franchise could sign a player on a 12-month contract, let alone a multi-year contract.
Do the franchises now have the power to change the contract structure of all these competitions? They will never tell the BCCI what to do, but maybe they can tell SA20, the ILT, the CPL and the MLS what to do? ie. they say to these competitions that you must allow us to sign 10 players outside of your draft and outside of your salary cap rules
I fear you may be fundamentally underestimating the power of the franchises. They are the foundations upon which the magnitude of the BCCI's wealth has been created. They 'own' the IPL which, as you will appreciate, means that SA20, ILT20, CPL and MLS are mere minions in the new order. And there will be an 'understanding' amongst the franchises that their 'icon' players, whom they will have under 12 or 24-month contracts, will not be illicitly approached. It is in all of their best commercial interests to have 'brand' players to parade around the world. No?
Well this past weekend showed just how powerful the IPL is, India were simply not in the game at Lord's, Australia came to play, but soon lost interest as it was obvious there was simply no fight, talent or reason for India to compete, it was a total and utter farce, a fraud on the venue, the majesty of test cricket, no way India wanted to be there, and they really should face a lengthy ban, 25 years and a $100m fine for the shameful and disgusting way they played the WTC final...
The last week has shown that save for the Ashes, which will soon fade, that test cricket has finally succumbed to to the toxin of IPL money, it is so obvious.. Why would any Indian player spend 5 x 3 sessions at 1 game, when they could make 10x more for 2 x 3 hour games, 2x a week??? Why would anyone play for peanuts in a test match?? A bit like playing for your country, you are not paid the same rate as if you are benched for your club..???
One thing I think this will herald is the destruction of the draft syatem. As you say, it obstructs the wishes of the IPL owners, and it seems to be there primarily as a bit of extra TV. But since the franchise competitions have now more or less destroyed the competition for TV slots, bilateral international cricket, there will be less need for that as a way of promoting the franchise competitions.
In my opinion, there is simply too much cricket on the go around the world. I don't get excited anymore like I used too. I think Tim Noakes should investigate "Supporter Burnout". Hell, I remember back in the 1980s when SA were still in isolation, my mates and I couldn't wait for September/October to come so that we could get to watch the local 45 Over Benson and Hedges "Pajama Cricket"!
Having said that, I can't blame the SA players for making hay out of franchise cricket given the shambles SA cricket admin is in. But the amount of games will eventually be the downfall of cricket with the Indians being the main benefactors. When will the House of Cards collapse?
Exactly, back in the bad days, when we had only internal competitions, cricket, rugby, soccer all had seasons, you knew that from the day you were born, and boy did we have it good in those days...
As a child it was only if you have been good at school, that you got to go to watch B n H at Kingsmead, the moms made the effort, snacks, oros in flasks, hot dogs and hamburgers, camped on the banks, the kids playing "frenchy" with kids from all races, it was a total blast, and I don't ever remember actually watching cricket, it was about playing "frenchy"
"We are Black, we are White, We are Dynamite.." anthem that rocked Kings Park when I was a schoolboy..When playing for Natal was a badge of honour, and the players were 12ft tall built like brick shithouses [not the bricks today, the old SA Railway bricks]..
Everyone had jobs, some players even 2 sports, and legends in both, Jonty, Errol Stewart, and when there were kids days, it was not sick with sponsorship toxin...
Supporter Burnout is 100% a vaild medical condition, totally 100% agree, that is the bubble I referred to in my post, Neil mentioned it with his comment about the 100... If he enjoyed the 100, then that comment would not have been made...It was, shows just how off base, out to pasture the moneymen are...
Sport is worse for them being there, they have not made it better, the medicine in this case, no money, no investment, take it all away, and you will see, a bigger better brighter sport....
In aviation this is called a fugoid, the rise and fall of a plane, as it gains airspeed, it gains lift, until it runs out of lift, then it cycles back into the fall, gaining airspeed, repeat.. Sport will survive without investment, without funding, as we all do.. We find ways..
Begs the question, who's love is the player playing for? Money or???
It is a bubble, like the dot com bubble, and of the millions of companies set up, only a few survive, the IPL is a parasite, it is killing the host on which it lives, but it like all parasites just find a new host and survive, the host in this case is test cricket...One Day cricket, local cricket..
R100 million is an insane number to believe, I am sure it is a lot more than that, with adverts and other media payments, I am sure it is more 1/2 B than 1/10th of a Billion ZAR...
I had no idea the IPL was on, and then it was all over, 3 days for 40 over game, sounds more like the RIP test cricket, often results in 3 days...
I am wondering at what point it will all collapse, it has to at some point reach the point of saturation, and at that point, it is a race to the bottom, that day is coming, and I think many of the players [the older players closer to 40 than 20] will be able to see this, the IPL was built on the reputations of the ilk of Faf, Dhoni, etc... Where was this reputation honed? Not in the IPL, but in test and one day..
So where is generation 3 going to build this reputation? Where is the heroics of 438 and 5 day last over 21 needed, and 64462..game won... Where are the legends going to be found? Will there even be first class cricket, and who has the time to watch to scout for talent? Is that talent worth R100m to R500m? Will the IPL be able sustain salaries and fee's of this magnitude for the next decade?
Too much sugar causes health problems, and too much IPL causes fatigue in the viewership, it is almost a pointless exercise.. So you loose today, there is tomorrow, just another win, another championship, it actually has zero value, why would players value this 1 day over all the others? It is just another game..
I have no longer any real interest in cricket, if the local tv parasite SS broadcast local 3 and 4 day games, with a couple of cameras, a scorer and a couple of commentators, rotating every 20 minutes, so that they get experience, gain confidence, maybe..They will never do it..and this just feeds the parasite, as every local game not broadcast is more toxin introduced by the IPL parasite, local broadcasting is a kind of antidote to the dullness of the IPL, it is great entertainment.. It was when it was broadcast, but "too expensive"??? Really in the age of fibre uncapped... You could put a whole broadcast rig, cameras, comms audio, recording, editing, mixer, for under R100 000...that fit into a a suitcase... All you need is space on the sat bird in the sky... Oh well...
I recently made the following comment in another forum about the IPL. "Last season I was still paying attention but this year I've lost interest in this constant barrage of tiktok cricket. T20 is an exciting format but when it overwhelms everything else, all these games start blending into a sameness that's become a yawn."
I live in a country where it takes effort to watch cricket. I have a subscription with Willow TV and also ESPN Plus which has given me access to more than enough cricket. However, it's been quite a few months since I've logged into the cricket feeds. With the move away from cable TV to various subscription services one has to start prioritizing what subscriptions you want to have. At this stage cricket might have to go although I'll probably keep ESPN for other sports.
I feel strangely detached from cricket after being a lifelong fan and player in my younger days. I will stick to following your newsletter and read ESPNcricinfo.
I love the photo of Santorini. I was lucky enough to live in Greece for almost five years. Some of best years of my life. I heard they had a cricket ground on Corfu. I was hoping to get a chance to turn my arm over there one day but unfortunately it didn't happen.
Cheers, Marc
Hi Marc,
A couple of days after Santorini I was in Corfu and saw the cricket ground! Took photos, too. It has a single astroturf pitch and the outfield is longer and thicker than Forrest Gump's beard at the end of the movie. But it's a cricket venue, nonetheless.
I think you need to be personally invested (emotionally or financially) in Franchise cricket for it to hold anything other than a passing interest, no matter how thrilling the games are - and there were many in this year's IPL. I watched several of them (professionally compelled) and I couldn't remember the result an hour after writing a match report, never mind the following morning. I'll just have to try harder...
Hi Neil. Post the photo of the Corfu ground if you get chance. I do follow you on Twitter and Instagram. All the best, Marc
Thanks for the insight - as usual - Neil.
Not only is there too much cricket, there is too much sport worldwide.
If I recall my aerodynamics, as the angle of attack is increased, so is lift. Good.
But only up to a point - eventually the wing will stall and that is not good. Recovery action is needed. Now, why do I think of that is apposite to your welcome article?
What we (and the sponsors and media and advertisers) need are more days in the year.
Hello again Dennis,
The old saying that 'a rising tide raises all boats' has been used a few times to describe the current economic climate in international cricket. It's true that every nation will receive 'more' income than before but it's impossible to pretend that the game can remain 'balanced' with the future model with the BCCI receiving 38% of global revenue with ECB and CA around 5% and scraps for everyone else. Around 95 Associate members will share scraps - growing the game is fantastic, but there's no point planting seeds if you don't water them!
...raises boats but sinks villages....
Hi Neil.
One thing I can't understand about these annual franchise contracts, is how do the franchises sign a player when that player has to have individual contracts for each tournament? If they sign a player today, but then the CPL has a draft in July, and then the MLS has another draft next year etc... how can the franchises know they can get that player?
All these tournaments would have different contract cycles, different contract rules, different salary caps, different salary cap rules. As it stands today, I just can't see how any franchise could sign a player on a 12-month contract, let alone a multi-year contract.
Do the franchises now have the power to change the contract structure of all these competitions? They will never tell the BCCI what to do, but maybe they can tell SA20, the ILT, the CPL and the MLS what to do? ie. they say to these competitions that you must allow us to sign 10 players outside of your draft and outside of your salary cap rules
My dear old friend,
I fear you may be fundamentally underestimating the power of the franchises. They are the foundations upon which the magnitude of the BCCI's wealth has been created. They 'own' the IPL which, as you will appreciate, means that SA20, ILT20, CPL and MLS are mere minions in the new order. And there will be an 'understanding' amongst the franchises that their 'icon' players, whom they will have under 12 or 24-month contracts, will not be illicitly approached. It is in all of their best commercial interests to have 'brand' players to parade around the world. No?
Well this past weekend showed just how powerful the IPL is, India were simply not in the game at Lord's, Australia came to play, but soon lost interest as it was obvious there was simply no fight, talent or reason for India to compete, it was a total and utter farce, a fraud on the venue, the majesty of test cricket, no way India wanted to be there, and they really should face a lengthy ban, 25 years and a $100m fine for the shameful and disgusting way they played the WTC final...
The last week has shown that save for the Ashes, which will soon fade, that test cricket has finally succumbed to to the toxin of IPL money, it is so obvious.. Why would any Indian player spend 5 x 3 sessions at 1 game, when they could make 10x more for 2 x 3 hour games, 2x a week??? Why would anyone play for peanuts in a test match?? A bit like playing for your country, you are not paid the same rate as if you are benched for your club..???
One thing I think this will herald is the destruction of the draft syatem. As you say, it obstructs the wishes of the IPL owners, and it seems to be there primarily as a bit of extra TV. But since the franchise competitions have now more or less destroyed the competition for TV slots, bilateral international cricket, there will be less need for that as a way of promoting the franchise competitions.
Oh, I forgot to mention - Enjoy your cruise!!!
Your article is 100% on point, Neil.
In my opinion, there is simply too much cricket on the go around the world. I don't get excited anymore like I used too. I think Tim Noakes should investigate "Supporter Burnout". Hell, I remember back in the 1980s when SA were still in isolation, my mates and I couldn't wait for September/October to come so that we could get to watch the local 45 Over Benson and Hedges "Pajama Cricket"!
Having said that, I can't blame the SA players for making hay out of franchise cricket given the shambles SA cricket admin is in. But the amount of games will eventually be the downfall of cricket with the Indians being the main benefactors. When will the House of Cards collapse?
Exactly, back in the bad days, when we had only internal competitions, cricket, rugby, soccer all had seasons, you knew that from the day you were born, and boy did we have it good in those days...
As a child it was only if you have been good at school, that you got to go to watch B n H at Kingsmead, the moms made the effort, snacks, oros in flasks, hot dogs and hamburgers, camped on the banks, the kids playing "frenchy" with kids from all races, it was a total blast, and I don't ever remember actually watching cricket, it was about playing "frenchy"
"We are Black, we are White, We are Dynamite.." anthem that rocked Kings Park when I was a schoolboy..When playing for Natal was a badge of honour, and the players were 12ft tall built like brick shithouses [not the bricks today, the old SA Railway bricks]..
Everyone had jobs, some players even 2 sports, and legends in both, Jonty, Errol Stewart, and when there were kids days, it was not sick with sponsorship toxin...
Supporter Burnout is 100% a vaild medical condition, totally 100% agree, that is the bubble I referred to in my post, Neil mentioned it with his comment about the 100... If he enjoyed the 100, then that comment would not have been made...It was, shows just how off base, out to pasture the moneymen are...
Sport is worse for them being there, they have not made it better, the medicine in this case, no money, no investment, take it all away, and you will see, a bigger better brighter sport....
In aviation this is called a fugoid, the rise and fall of a plane, as it gains airspeed, it gains lift, until it runs out of lift, then it cycles back into the fall, gaining airspeed, repeat.. Sport will survive without investment, without funding, as we all do.. We find ways..
Begs the question, who's love is the player playing for? Money or???
It is a bubble, like the dot com bubble, and of the millions of companies set up, only a few survive, the IPL is a parasite, it is killing the host on which it lives, but it like all parasites just find a new host and survive, the host in this case is test cricket...One Day cricket, local cricket..
R100 million is an insane number to believe, I am sure it is a lot more than that, with adverts and other media payments, I am sure it is more 1/2 B than 1/10th of a Billion ZAR...
I had no idea the IPL was on, and then it was all over, 3 days for 40 over game, sounds more like the RIP test cricket, often results in 3 days...
I am wondering at what point it will all collapse, it has to at some point reach the point of saturation, and at that point, it is a race to the bottom, that day is coming, and I think many of the players [the older players closer to 40 than 20] will be able to see this, the IPL was built on the reputations of the ilk of Faf, Dhoni, etc... Where was this reputation honed? Not in the IPL, but in test and one day..
So where is generation 3 going to build this reputation? Where is the heroics of 438 and 5 day last over 21 needed, and 64462..game won... Where are the legends going to be found? Will there even be first class cricket, and who has the time to watch to scout for talent? Is that talent worth R100m to R500m? Will the IPL be able sustain salaries and fee's of this magnitude for the next decade?
Too much sugar causes health problems, and too much IPL causes fatigue in the viewership, it is almost a pointless exercise.. So you loose today, there is tomorrow, just another win, another championship, it actually has zero value, why would players value this 1 day over all the others? It is just another game..
I have no longer any real interest in cricket, if the local tv parasite SS broadcast local 3 and 4 day games, with a couple of cameras, a scorer and a couple of commentators, rotating every 20 minutes, so that they get experience, gain confidence, maybe..They will never do it..and this just feeds the parasite, as every local game not broadcast is more toxin introduced by the IPL parasite, local broadcasting is a kind of antidote to the dullness of the IPL, it is great entertainment.. It was when it was broadcast, but "too expensive"??? Really in the age of fibre uncapped... You could put a whole broadcast rig, cameras, comms audio, recording, editing, mixer, for under R100 000...that fit into a a suitcase... All you need is space on the sat bird in the sky... Oh well...