Figure out the future

It's appropriate that the successful inaugural World Twenty20 tournament has caused so much speculation about cricket's future, because what the game desperately needs is vision: the type of leadership it has never before experienced.

The game has evolved in the last 30 years mainly as a result of a number of knee-jerk reactions to perceived problems in the sport, interspersed with the occasional volcanic upheaval. While no one can be absolutely sure of the future, both short and long-term plans are required so that cricket has some clarity over where it's heading and why it has chosen that direction.

The players and coaches do a lot of waffling about game plans on the field, but in general plans should be simple and flexible, based on common sense and cricket knowledge. And that would be an ideal formula for the game's leaders to adopt when developing their blueprint for the future.

Modern administrators have shown they can develop a plan that has some merit. The recent one put forward by the boards of India, Australia, England and South Africa to play an international Twenty20 competition at the domestic level and involve franchises shows they have foresight. However, the fact that the plan appears to have been prompted by the announcement of a rebel tournament devalues its overall merit. Once again there is a perception that this is a knee-jerk reaction to another potential upheaval. And the mention of franchises leads to the conclusion that the driving force behind the scheme is money, with the overall good of the game a distant second. Businessmen will be involved - via the franchises - but there has been no mention of consultation with the international players' association. This is further confirmation of the low esteem in which current and ex-cricketers are held by some administrators.

Mind you, the players only have themselves to blame. They have an international body that doesn't include a representative membership from the subcontinent - an indication of the naïve, self-centered approach that administrators rely on to "keep the players dumb".

Nevertheless, the attitude on both sides - players and administrators - needs to change. Whereas in the past the administrators had only to ensure that balance was maintained on the field between bat and ball, an off-field factor has now crept in to complicate the equation. Recently administrators have placed a high importance on financial matters and legal opinion to the detriment of the playing side of the game. Just as maintaining the balance between bat and ball via appropriate laws is critical, the playing schedule and the financial interests of the game need to be kept in perspective. If the cricket on the field is skillful and competitive and played under a workable set of laws, the business side of the game will virtually take care of itself.

So first of all the administrators have to engage the players and work with them on planning the future. Both sides have to first decide what it is they are trying to achieve with each form of the game and then ensure that all three - Test, limited-overs and Twenty20 - dovetail to produce the best and most viable international product.

Cricket was dragged fully into the professional era when World Series Cricket appeared on the scene and the players rebelled in its favour. The players gave no more thought to planning the way ahead than the administrators did and what has resulted is the equivalent of a 1970s car with modern accessories added as required.

Before both sides choose a new model, though, they have to decide what they want it to achieve. Ideally it should be a model that will run smoothly and economically, with a minimum of tinkering. This can't happen with the current structure of international cricket and it must be reformed before a bright, new, shiny model can be unveiled in the showroom.

The dust may have settled on the inaugural World Twenty20 tournament but a large cloud is hanging over the future of cricket. If the administrators are prepared to plan the way forward with the players' co-operation then it has the potential to be a cloud with a silver lining; however, if they continue down the current path, that cloud could well be mushroom shaped.