Hard to stay motivated
AB DE VILLIERS’ remarks yesterday in which he expanded his views on the need for a better structure for international cricket caused a shudder through the game.
De Villiers, very worryingly, spoke of not always being motivated by the international game. “I found myself on the pitch in the past few years, not often, but not enjoying myself as much as I should be and that raises concerns for me.”
It should for everyone. I wonder how much of that lack of stimulation De Villiers has been feeling is as a result of cricket’s sameness. Show the structure of international cricket to a non-cricket watcher and it looks really boring. Same teams, same places, one series roles over to another and in the case of Test cricket, there’s very little context especially since the International Cricket Council chose to no longer institute the ‘Test championship’.
The advent of and rapid growth of numerous T20 leagues has drawn players’ attention away from the international game. The financial rewards on offer are enormous, that as De Villiers mentioned yesterday “can’t be ignored because they make a big difference”.
The ICC has failed to come to terms with the growth of the various domestic T20 leagues and the impact it will have on their prized product – international cricket.
De Villiers has a huge contract with the Bangalore Royal Challengers in the IPL – understood to be well over $1-million – and on top of that there are the numerous endorsements he has with various Indian companies too. He is one of the most popular players in the modern game and as a result various leagues in Australia, the Caribbean and in England would throw money at him to play.
Cricket South Africa simply can’t compete financially with what De Villiers would be offered overseas. The one thing keeping him here is the badge on his shirt, but if the international schedule isn’t structured better, then all the patriotism in the world wouldn’t keep De Villiers interested in playing international cricket.
Sadly, the ICC remains an insular body, while whatever attempts at giving a structure to the international game crumbled when the ‘big three’ – England, Australia and India, virtually took over the running of the organisation.
l Meanwhile news about a former Proteas player being the ‘intermediary’ who is accused of possibly fixing matches in the RamSlam is very concerning. It’s been reported that domestic players face axing or suspension. Cricket SA have tried to keep a lid on it, but with lots of lawyers now involved that will be impossible. The organisation needs to lay all the information on the table.