Tests remain the players' choice

Test cricket remains the most important format but more than half of the international cricketers questioned admitted they would retire early if an attractive offer came from the IPL. Those are among the results of the latest annual survey conducted by the Federation of International Cricketers' Associations (FICA).

The survey was put to 105 cricketers from the seven Test-playing counties who have players' associations - the exceptions being India, Pakistan and Zimbabwe - and replies were received from 64.

Test cricket received overwhelming backing, with 86% rating it as the most important form of the game, ahead of the World Cup (10%). Not one player rated ODIs or international Twenty20s as their No. 1 choice. When asked about a Test Championship, 60% wanted one, and 98% stressed the need for Tests to maintain their current status in the international calendar.

The impact of Twenty20 was obvious, but the majority of those polled said that the biggest loser would be ODI cricket and not Tests.

All of those who replied agreed that the IPL was appealing, but less pleasing for the Indian board was that 86% also said the ICL was also an attractive option and, despite threats of bans, 67% said they would consider signing an ICL contract. The grind of day-to-day international cricket was given as the main reason why 52% said they would retire early to play just in the IPL. For the same reason, 95% wanted a window in the international calendar to allow for the IPL and similar events.

What will worry administrators is that 64% of players would put their loyalty to the IPL ahead of that to their home board

There was also a large majority who felt that ICL-contracted players ought to be allowed to play international (63%) and domestic (87%) cricket.

"It's clear that the players firmly believe that Twenty20 cricket will form an important part of the cricketing landscape in the future, particularly club like competitions such as IPL," FICA's chief executive Tim May said. "At the same time, it is clear that the players want to be able to protect Test cricket as the lead format of the game.

"It is also evident that today's player is less likely to be loyal to commitments to his home board, as cricket's employment market is freed from the power of governing bodies, who previously enjoyed an inequitable power base by virtue of being the 'only employer in the market'. Simply, the freeing up of the market and the lifting of the 'citizenship barriers' has resulted in more market driven values for players, and the players not surprisingly are gravitating to that market.

"The players and FICA feel very strongly that to preserve a healthy balance between club/ franchise cricket and international cricket, that the ICC needs to create a window in its programming, or risk losing players permanently from the International cricket scene.

"Without such window, the International cricket product will be weakened and the possibility will then arise of the international product being a declining product in cricket's future landscape," he concluded. "That is a situation that we obviously want to avoid."