Not only franchise leagues, but also one-day internationals and test matches should be protected, according to Kapil Dev, the captain of the team that won the World Cup.
The proliferation of Twenty20 leagues across the globe suggests that there will almost certainly be a significant adjustment made to the format of cricket events in the years to come. In addition to existing Twenty20 cricket competitions such as the Indian Premier League, the Pakistan Super League, and the Big Bash League, the United Arab Emirates and South Africa have just announced the launch of their very own T20 leagues.
The proliferation of franchise leagues all over the world, the vast majority of which have attracted enormous levels of commercial interest, has led a number of knowledgeable individuals to speculate that cricket may soon follow the model of football, in which players compete in club competitions for the majority of the year.
Kapil Dev, who captained India to victory in the World Cup in 1983, is of the opinion that the revenue earned by franchise Twenty20 leagues need to be put toward the preservation of test cricket.
Dev was quoted as saying to both the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, “I think it’s going off.” “The International Cricket Council bears a greater responsibility for determining how to manage this game. It is heading in the same direction that football has in Europe. They do not compete against one another’s countries. It occurs every once every four years (during the World Cup). Is this going to be how it works, with the World Cup taking place, and the rest of the year being spent playing club cricket?”
In addition, Dev stated that it is the ICC’s duty to ‘secure the survival’ of one-day internationals and test matches. “Will cricket players eventually focus their attention primarily on the Indian Premier League, the Big Bash, or another competition of a similar nature? Therefore, the International Cricket Council (ICC) needs to devote a greater amount of time to figuring out how they can protect not only club cricket but also one-day cricket and test match cricket “he stated.
“The occasional game of club cricket is enjoyable. The Big Bash holds up well enough. However, the South African league and the United Arab Emirates league are both on the way. If every nation decides to play in domestic club competitions, then the only time international cricket will be played will be during the World Cup.”
