Birth of international cricket
Many experts may feel international cricket is currently in shambles but Mihir Bose believes that for the first time in cricket's history, we are witnessing the emergence of a truly international set-up, one that is not under the control of a
Nishi Narayanan
25-Feb-2013
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Many experts may feel international cricket is currently in shambles but Mihir Bose believes that for the first time in cricket's history, we are witnessing the emergence of a truly international set-up, one that is not under the control of a western power. He writes in his BBC column:
Cricket may be the oldest of ball games - indeed the English County Championship was the template for the English Football League - but as a truly international sport it is a mere child when compared with others, not much more than a couple of decades old. Before then, cricket revolved around the Ashes series between England and Australia. Many of the greats of English cricket never played a Test in the subcontinent because B teams were sent between 1934 and 1976. Nigel Howard has the unique record of having played for England only as captain in India. As for Australia, they were so dismissive of their neighbour, New Zealand, that after touring there in 1946 their next visit was in the 70s. Essentially, India, Pakistan and New Zealand made up the B league, tolerated but not important.
In his blog on Daily Mail Paul Newman finds it hard to accept that England have returned to India for the 'good of the game' and 'for the Indian people'.
It seems to me that England are being put forward to be sacrificed, in a purely cricketing sense, in the name of what is best not for the game but for the money men. And for the ECB who, since Giles Clarke became chairman, have found themselves being increasingly out-manouvered by India on just about every major cricketing issue. This, surely, is their way of clawing back lost ground, of getting back in Modi's good books in the hope of attracting Indian players to the new English Premier League in 2010, a commercial necessity, and clearing the path of England's players to the Indian Premier League next April. Not to mention the ECB's hopes of getting a share of the vast television fortunes on offer if and when the Champions League eventually gets off the ground.
The Hindu's Nirmal Shekar writes that Kevin Pietersen’s team rallied with clear-eyed pragmatism and chose the difficult yet correct path which will be a lasting testimony to their sense of duty and professionalism.
In cricketnirvana.com, G Rajaraman writes that to suggest money is the only reason for England's decision is to foolishly overlook the symbiotic relationship between sport and civil society.
Nishi Narayanan is a staff writer at ESPNcricinfo