T20 leagues all over the world and IPL expansion into foreign leagues have been impacting international cricket. Read the below article to find out more.
It is evident that T20 cricket has made a significant impact on playing methods and attitudes. The hot term in international cricket currently is Bazball. Players like Travis Head, Zak Crawley, Rishabh Pant and many others have gained popularity and enjoyed success while playing positively or aggressively. While players like these three have found success it would not have been possible without the advent of T20 leagues. T20 cricket has made people or even national selectors believe that there are batters who can survive test cricket or international cricket while playing aggressively. But there have been few instances of T20 leagues harming international cricket. In this article, we will take a look at how T20 leagues seem to be destroying international cricket.
IPL owners with multiple teams in foreign countries
Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises now hold a major part of cricket across the world. Eight of the ten teams in the IPL now own at least one team in foreign leagues. These teams are owned by multi-billionaires like Mukesh Ambani who does not shy away from investing money. The advent of these T20 leagues means that there is a lot of money involved in the sport. For those who are keen on making a quick buck while enjoying T20 matches, Casino Days India offers multiple options from different genres. The Capitals owns Delhi Capitals in IPL and WPL, Pretoria Capitals in SA20, Dubai Capitals in ILT20.
While the Ambani-owned teams have made their presence felt in IPL and WPL by the name of Mumbai Indians, they also have teams like MI Emirates in ILT20, MI Cape Town in SA20 and MI New York in MLC.
The Royals franchise too is involved in many T20 leagues in foreign countries. Apart from the Rajasthan Royals team in IPL, they have Barbados Royals in CPL and WCPL Paarl Royals in SA20.
Shah Rukh Khan and Jay Mehta owned Knight Riders group has played one of the pivotal roles in introducing the world of cricket franchises to other IPL teams. They bought the Trinidad and Tobago team in CPL and renamed it to Trinibago Knight Riders. They also have the same team in WCPL. Apart from CPL and IPL they own Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in ILT20 and Los Angeles Knight Riders in MLC.
Players give up central contracts
IPL teams having multiple franchises in foreign leagues means that they can offer a player a central contract similar to one they would receive from the national cricket board. In an ordinary year, an IPL season is for two months and might well be extended to two and a half months in the near future. SA20 and ILT20 are nearly a month-long clashing with each other in terms of dates. One year old Major League Cricket in the United States of America is two weeks long. This means that a player can play for a franchise with teams in these countries for half a year and can still play in the Hundred (England), the Big Bash League (Australia) and the Super Smash (New Zealand).
Players have now started to give up central contracts from their national board as they can now earn a lot of money while playing for franchise cricket while feeling much less pressure than playing for their respective countries. There have already been a few instances where players are accused of injuring or resting and opting out of international duties to keep themselves fit to play in franchise leagues like IPL. Even Indian players who are not allowed to play in foreign leagues are accused by fans of prioritising IPL over international cricket or even domestic cricket.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there is no denying that the emergence of T20 cricket, personified by leagues like the IPL, has fundamentally changed the sport’s landscape. The rise in popularity of Bazball and the achievements of athletes like Rishabh Pant, Travis Head, and Zak Crawley highlight the trend towards more aggressive play. On the other hand, there are worries regarding the impact of T20 leagues on international cricket due to their proliferation and the IPL franchises’ international expansion. This change in priorities is seen in the tendency of players to choose lucrative franchise deals over central contracts. T20 leagues are financially rewarding, but they also put the game’s established structures in jeopardy, therefore it’s important to carefully assess their long-term effects.