The IPL is beginning to flex its muscles and the signs are ominous. The sooner the cricketing world realises and takes remedial measures, the better it will be for the game. If not, the game will forever be taken over by the franchises and cricket will cease to be a game among international teams. Last season, 2022, has already seen the introduction of 2 new teams into the league. Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants. It is just a question of time before more and more cities and teams are added to the league. There will be a point when every city in India will have an IPL team. IPL will run for about 8 months and international cricket be damned. The expansion of IPL is a threat to cricket itself.
When the IPL was first conceptualised, it was along the lines of the English Premier League. The English Premier League is the pre-eminent sporting league in the world. Most of the teams and their players are known throughout the world. Fans from far-off countries have stayed glued to the television in the hope of seeing their favourite players in action. Now, it can be argued that international football did not suffer because of EPL. The last Football World Cup was sold for record bids. It must be remembered that outside of the World Cup, no one even bothers about other international games. Club games, yes but not international ones. World Cup is the only arena where patriotism spills over to the games.
Cricket cannot afford something similar. Every game involves a lot of statistics. Infact, statistics is the base of the game and is also the backbone of the game.
The future looks scary
Much of the same can be said for the IPL. I foresee a scenario where outside of the ODI and T20 World Cups, other games between national teams will pale into insignificance. To make matters worse, cricketers may even refuse to turnout in their national colours for a significant number of games. We have already witnessed some off late. Trent Boult did not wish for his contract to be extended by Cricket New Zealand because he wanted to make himself available for franchise cricket and thereby secure his future. He wasn’t at fault here. The money in New Zealand cricket is pretty low. Being a bowler, who has a higher chance of being injured, he just cannot afford to let an opportunity slip.
Some marquee series like The Ashes, India against England & Australia will still be played but other games will lose their value. When that happens, the smaller boards will be severely hit. They will find it impossible to come out of that rut. Some boards may simply vanish or will be propped by the IPL franchises just for them to be able to pick the correct talent for their teams.
IPL teams, now with massive access to wealth and a higher number of players required because of the expansion, will be willing to offer money that was seemingly out of bounds. Let us remember that the life of any sportsperson is limited. He or she will have to make their entire life secure from a small part of their living life. When faced with such an eventuality, it is a no-brainer which way the players will swing.
Combined contracts
There are already informal talks going on between the players and various franchises. Accordingly, cricketers will be issued a combination contract. In a sense, they will be eligible to play in multiple leagues around the world. Indian franchises already own all the teams in the South African league. They have a significant presence in the ILT20. As time goes by, these franchises will most probably invest in other leagues as well.
Heath Mills, executive chairman of FICA, the global players’ body. “There have been informal conversations between some franchises and players about being available to play in multiple tournaments,” Mills told ESPNcricinfo. “That can take a different shape and form for different players. But it should come as no surprise to anyone in cricket that these conversations are happening and that players will have these sorts of options in the future.
When this comes to pass, the players will be employed by their respective franchises rather than by their board or county. How can the boards, especially, the boards of Sri Lanka, West Indies, New Zealand, Pakistan or for that matter, even South Africa will be able to stand up to the money on offer? Let alone paying a higher salary but these boards will not even be able to come close to the offer on the table.
The administrators may be in denial that this may not happen as the ECB’s managing director, Robert Key states, “Test cricket is still the hold for English players, I don’t see any time in the near future certainly where one of the Test players, certainly the centrally contracted players, is going to say ‘by the way I’m going off to America for three weeks,” Key said. “I just don’t think that’s going to happen. That is not a threat at the moment
Ranji Trophy will be the biggest sufferer
The bigger casualty, atleast from the Indian perspective will be the Ranji Trophy. With international games losing their significance, fewer and fewer players will be willing to go through the grind of a Ranji game. They do not have any bigger prize to aim for and hence, will not want their bodies to go through the chore day in and day out. Instead, they will be happy to play in the domestic T20 competition to prepare themselves for getting picked during the auction.
Wrapping up the expansion of IPL
The BCCI created a monster in the form of IPL. It is here to stay permanently. It may undergo transformation but will not be relegated. The English Premier League runs for 8 months thereby capturing the imagination of the sporting public. IPL too will eventually end up with the same duration.
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