England’s determination to progress as an ODI side has been underlined by Andrew Strauss, as he opened the door to the possibility of players missing international matches to play in overseas T20 leagues including the Indian Premier League. England’s Director of Cricket has made no secret of his intention to focus on developing skills in white-ball as well as Test cricket but his intervention marks a sea-change in the ECB’s attitude towards a format, and a particular tournament, it had previously regarded with suspicion.
When asked in an interview on Thursday about players potentially missing the start of the English summer to play in the IPL, Strauss was candid: “Let’s be honest – we’re not going to make massive strides in white-ball cricket without making some hard decisions along the way.”
“The great thing about going to those tournaments is that you go as an overseas player so you’re under pressure to perform and win games.”
“If someone is a white-ball specialist and his focus in the short term is on white-ball cricket then (allowing a player to play in the IPL) seems like an easy decision to make”, he said.
“I think we have to be prepared to do that and I personally believe we can make those strides and not do it at the expense of Test cricket.”
Strauss’s comments reaffirm his vision to build two distinct squads of players: one Test, the other white-ball in their primary focus. There will inevitably be some crossover between the two – Joe Root and Ben Stokes spring immediately to mind – but Strauss is clear that when necessary priority will still be given to England’s Test side: “I can’t foresee any circumstances in which we would weaken our Test team in order to allow a player to play in the IPL or any other franchise-based competition.
“This is about striking the right balance in the long-term between red and white-ball cricket and giving players better opportunities to improve in both formats.”
The practicalities will require careful and sensitive management, particularly for those young players currently considered ODI specialists but with future Test ambitions – the likes of Alex Hales, David Willey, Sam Billings and Jason Roy, for example, might find themselves playing very little first-class cricket over the course of a season having potentially returned from the IPL straight into the international summer. But Strauss’s sentiments show a genuine desire to – finally – bring English cricket into line with the changed face of the world game.
But there is, however, a significant elephant in the room, and not, for once, the one that normally plays with number 24 on his back. It is one thing being available to play in the IPL but quite another to be picked up by a franchise. Last season Alex Hales, despite Nottinghamshire agreeing to his availability for the whole tournament and being ranked second in the ICC rankings in T20s when entering the IPL auction, remained unsold.
What has always been implied in the annual should-they-play-shouldn’t-they-play debate around English players and the IPL has been the assumption that franchises are always sitting by the phone, eagerly waiting for word that the ECB has finally relented. The reality, though, may well prove to be something very different, and it is quite possible that despite the ECB’s apparent conversion that particular boat has already been missed.
Still, after England’s performance in the last World Cup showed how far behind the rest of the world they were in ODI cricket, Andrew Strauss has shown that he is quite prepared to challenge established orthodoxies in order to change it. He has sent a clear signal that England is finally willing to recognise the value of T20 leagues in the development of its international team. Let’s hope it pays off.
