Gower believes ageism has played part in Sky’s decision to let him go
Ex-england captain to bow out after the Ashes Broadcaster looking for more diverse panel
David Gower believes there was “an element of implied ageism” in the decision by Sky not to renew his contract once the Ashes finish next week. The comments come as the former England captain, who has spent more than 20 years with the television broadcaster, prepares for his final Test match behind the mic at the Oval on Thursday.
Gower is thought to be unhappy with Sky’s decision and, in a candid interview with The Daily Telegraph, has detailed how he is disappointed not to be continuing after “applying for my own job” over the past two years.
The 62-year-old also feels he has suffered due to the “rampant charge” that has led to “more diversity” in the commentary box, adding that “lots of things are changing very rapidly and evolving, which are beyond the control of people like me”. And when asked by The Telegraph whether he felt his age was a factor in Sky’s decision, Gower said: “There is an element of implied ageism in this.”
Sir Ian Botham is also leaving Sky at the end of this series, while the broadcaster has increasingly turned to the likes of Isa Guha, the first woman of Asian heritage to play for England, and former England batsmen Ian Ward and Rob Key to anchor their coverage.
And Gower has revealed for the first time he has felt he was reapplying for his job while on the air ever since being told two years ago he would be playing a less active role in Sky’s coverage of England’s oneday and Twenty20 matches.
“I had a tap on the shoulder and the quote was, ‘You’re doing a great job, but we would like to freshen up our white-ball coverage’,” explained Gower. “Now they didn’t start letting off fireworks or putting modern art displays in the commentary box. It was just a change of face at the start of the programme, and everything else was much the same, to be honest. I have had it explained to me there are evolutionary trends in broadcasting and we’ve seen the change towards more diversity, which is rampant at the moment, and will continue. Lots of things are changing very rapidly and evolving, which are beyond the control of people like me.
“I have tried to, as it were, apply for my own job, avidly over the last couple of years and have been quietly rebuffed by this so-called evolution. I would like to think there is space for people like me. Nowadays, in the same way that diversity is very much the key, one’s definition of old is changing very quickly.
“Whatever the facts and figures, I don’t feel old. I have enjoyed this series, because I had wanted to enjoy it, if you see what I mean.”
Sky last night responded to Gower’s comments, saying: “David Gower gave Sky Sports viewers great insight into cricket at the highest level, and we thank him for a tremendous innings in the studio for more than 25 years. His age has no bearing on our decision to evolve our line up and continue to give our customers insightful and engaging coverage of cricket.”
Gower is keen to remain in broadcasting, although he insists that last week’s appearance on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, reading the sports news, was a one-off. “[I am] open to all offers, and showing willing where I can,” he said.
There has been an outpouring of affection for a broadcaster whose languid, unflustered style is seen by many to be a dying art. As the England and Wales Cricket Board seeks to introduce a new format next year, the Hundred, , it has made many wonder whether there is not room for his calming voice among the increasing freneticism that accompanies the sport.
“As an individual, you make your own decisions [about] how you play and how you broadcast,” said Gower. “And part of that is innate. If I started trying to ramp it up like some demented IPL commentator at the end of a close game, I don’t think it would sound right.”
When the Ashes finish at the Oval next week, the venue will be poignant for Gower. He scored four of his 18 Test centuries there, including 157 in the final Test of the 1985 Ashes to steer his side to a 3-1 series victory, and it is the English ground on which he has his highest batting average. Another innings he remembers fondly was an unbeaten 157 against India, which helped save both the game and his Test career. It was also a moment which reinforced Gower’s suspicion he might be a bit different to those around him.
He said: “I remember walking off the field and it was a time when I was slightly at odds with the ethos of the team, or the management, and Dilip Vengsarkar said, ‘Well played,’ and then he said, ‘You don’t really fit in here, do you?’
“And I said, ‘Well, mmm, OK, I get your point.’ It was one of those things, where it’s also echoed in the title I picked for my autobiography, which is An Endangered Species,” continues Gower. “Which links in [my passion for] wildlife, but it also links in the way I –” Gower pauses. “– sort of, am. And I was in that team in the early Eighties, early Nineties. So, [I was] a little bit apart in the way that I was in an era that was also changing rapidly.”
Gower does not consider himself an outsider in the Sky commentary box, but suggests it is “nice to have the variety of both the voices and the opinions”, offering “scope for the animated discussion”.
“It would be dull if everyone spent the whole day saying, ‘Yep, I agree entirely’,” says Gower. This brings him back to reality because he is no longer what Sky is looking for. With his imminent free agency, therefore, what does he really think about the contribution of Sky Sports, as a subscription television provider, to the game?
“I have slightly more freedom to talk now than I might have done before. I’ve always been very open about this, that the wider the audience, in one sense, the better. But I will always add a strong note of caution. “There are two things. One is if other people don’t want to broadcast, you are stuffed. So, if terrestrial television does not have time to do it justice, you are stuffed. I mean, I have no axe to grind on this, but Sky is probably the best place for [cricket].
“Because it has the time, and space, and the passion actually, the desire to make it look good. The greatest concern is for Test cricket. Our audience, the demographic is well established and it likes what it sees.”
This, Gower suggested, would not change with someone younger and less experienced in charge of coverage. “You can change the look of a television screen, but it is the action people want to see.”
And cricket will still be there. Even if Gower is not.
‘I would like to think there is space for people like me. I don’t feel old’