On Monday, former India captain Sourav Ganguly remarked that the phenomena of players becoming drawn by the expanding number of Twenty20 leagues is a short-term phenomenon because eventually “just a few” financially sustainable leagues will remain. This prediction was made by Ganguly.
Because of the proliferation of Twenty20 leagues all over the world, players have begun to prioritise franchise cricket over their responsibilities to their national teams.
While the first seasons of leagues in the United Arab Emirates and South Africa are currently underway, the Big Bash League, which is an established product, has recently finished its run.
Later on in this year, a league is also going to be organised in the United States. On the other hand, Ganguly predicted that in the long run, only leagues that had an ecology would be successful.
At a Sportstar event in this city, he made the following statement: “We keep talking about the leagues around the world, if you look at the IPL it is in a different ecosystem and different league, the Big Bash in Australia does very well, The Hundred does very well in the UK, and I see the South Africa league doing very well, I have been watching it for the last three weeks.”
“One thing that all of these leagues have in common is that they are located in nations where cricket is extremely popular.
After a period of time, perhaps four or five years, I think we will reach a point when there will be very few of them left, and I will be able to tell you which ones those are.
“Players will come to the realisation that the league they play in is not nearly as significant as they formerly thought, resulting in the demise of some leagues while others thrive. Because they are brand new, everybody wants to be a part of it right now, which is why there is such a rush.
“However, in the end, it will get back to a stage when the significance of the country will be on par with that of the league. This is because the environment will only allow a select few to exist.
In the 1990s, Zimbabwe was a formidable opponent in world cricket; however, the sport’s popularity in the country has decreased in recent years due to administrative problems “stated Ganguly.
“It has a lot to do with the administration, to be honest (teams struggling in international cricket). Because I served as president of the CAB for five years, then as president of the BCCI for three years, and also because I represented India in the ICC, I have seen the entire structure and support system that makes the game possible. I will continue to say that “he said.
“When I competed in my first World Cup in 1999, Zimbabwe had the ability to win against any opponent. There was probably not a lot of money in the Zimbabwe cricket organisation back then, and even India did not have that much money.
“In the days when Michael Holding, Andy Roberts, and Joel Garner were playing for the West Indies, where was all the money? There was none of that. To keep the players on the team, administration is of the utmost importance.
“Many issues can be resolved more easily if there is a positive relationship between the players and the administrators. I don’t believe that a lack of financial resources is an issue anymore given that Cricket has significantly more of it. It is essential to keep the players that are representing the country in competitions.”
