‘INDIANS KEEN TO PLAY IN THE HUNDRED’
ENGLAND’S white ball captain Eoin Morgan, who also leads Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, claims that a lot of Indian players are interested in being a part of his country’s ambitious ‘The Hundred’ league as well as other franchise events across the globe.
Morgan also urged the game’s administrators to have a roadmap for the next 10 years to ensure that top players are not forced to choose a lucrative private league career over international cricket.
“Just having conversations out here about ‘The Hundred’, I know there are Indian cricketers out here who would love to play in The Hundred and other competitions around the world,” Morgan told ‘Sky Sports’ at an interaction but did not take any names. “They love travelling and experiencing new conditions and cultures, and they would add huge value to a tournament like that,” he added.
The Hundred is a franchisebased 100-ball cricket event that was supposed to start last year in England. However, the Covid-19 pandemic led to its postponement to this year. Morgan said the ICC is not doing enough to accommodate the countries which are losing players to private leagues. “My biggest worry is that the game isn’t changing and accommodating the pace at which it is growing.
“It is definitely an area of concern and one that needs improvement going forward because you play against countries and some aren’t able to play their best XIs because they are competing against big leagues around the world,” Morgan told former England skipper Nasser Hussain during the chat. Morgan cautioned ICC that in another decade’s time, the franchise leagues will take over international cricket.
Morgan said the mistake the custodians of the game have made is not segregating the three formats properly. “One of the biggest mistakes we make as a sport is having all three formats overlap or not recognising the roles that they play within the game. T20 cricket is an avenue for a young kid who has never seen the game and sees this big shiny thing on TV... and the ball being blasted everywhere.