Ever since it became evident that the pandemic was going to shuffle the cricket calendar, there have been voices of dissension in Australia who have claimed that a potential clash of dates with the Indian Premier League and the domestic Sheffield Shield should not see Cricket Australia hesitate to not send the Australian cricketers. But with the world view having significantly shifted as a result of the pandemic, CA might have had little choice as it turns out.
Even if Cricket Australia would like to show that it was taking time considering whether to release its dozen and a half cricketers for the rescheduled Indian Premier League, reestablishing its authority over the players, the truth of the matter is that with the ICC Twenty20 World Cup now postponed, Cricket Australia knows that with the Indian tour of Australia the only major revenue stream available to it, it would do better than to antagonize the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) at this point.
There has been much speculation in recent days that Cricket Australia and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) are not seeing eye-to-eye particularly after the CA proposed to the International Cricket Council (ICC) that it should host the next year’s ICC Twenty20 World Cup in lieu of India after pushing to scrap this year’s edition on its own turf. Furthermore, with the expected domestic season coming in the way of a rescheduled IPL, Cricket Australia would have liked to have imposed its authority on the Australian cricketers with whom it has already suffered a fractious relationship over the salary cuts to the support staff at the outset of the pandemic break.
With as many as eighteen Australian cricketers set to earn in the high millions, there is a lot of money at stake and therefore, a lot of leverage. However, for Cricket Australia to even put out a statement a la New Zealand cricket that it was taking into consideration several factors before signing the No Objection Certificates that would facilitate the participation of these cricketers in the league, is folly, financially speaking.
Cricket Australia has made no bones about where its interest lies ever since expressing reluctance to host the ICC Twenty20 World Cup. It has been in negotiations with the BCCI to commit the Indian team to an additional fifth Test to the itinerary, counting the potential coffer change that would be on hand with India’s popularity on the cricket scene, not to mention its business attraction.
There has been more serious clamor in recent months for the domestic cricket season to be revived, for the forced participation of the Australian cricketers in the domestic circuit since they earn healthy retainer contracts and of putting a priority on Australia’s cricket redevelopment, having suffered a damaging quake after a steady world domination period beginning in the late ’90s.
However, not only have the Australian cricketers expressed strong loyalty to the IPL for obvious reasons, Cricket Australia is in an equally tempted compromise, wanting to appease the BCCI to fill its own coffers. Therefore, the whole proposition of Cricket Australia even contemplating the release of the cricketers for the IPL falls flat on its face. Cricket Australia would not want to be caught doing anything that jeopardizes the Indian cricket team landing on its own shores, least of which being upsetting the IPL apple cart.
Also Read
We are still very good friends: Michael Clarke opens up on his divorce with Kyly Boldy