ICC Set to Bring In Two New Rules to Reduce Impact of T20 Franchise Leagues Over International Cricket: Report
Earlier, Jason Roy became the first high-profile cricket star to walk away from his England contract and sign a lucrative deal to play in the Major League Cricket in United States. The ICC in an attempt to prevent this from happening with other players, is reportedly set to introduce new rules.
One cannot argue the growing influence of franchise T20 cricket, which is gradually bringing about a change in the landscape of the sport with players signing lucrative deals with T20 franchises and preferring playing for them over their own national boards. Earlier, Jason Roy became the first high-profile cricketer to give up his England contract and pen a deal to play in the inaugural Major League Soccer (MLS) in the United States and this pattern is likely to be repeated for other players in the future. The growth of franchise T20 cricket has certainly posed to be a threat to international cricket and the ICC, in a bid to limit its impact, is reportedly set to usher in a few changes, namely two rules. International Cricket Stars Involved in Informal Talks With IPL Team Owners for Long-Term Franchise Over Country Contracts: Reports.
According to a report in The Telegraph, the cricket governing body would ask the T20 franchises to pay the national boards for the players they sign. Also, they would restrict the number of overseas players in a playing XI in franchise cricket. The T20 franchises would be required to pay 10% of the fee that they give the player, to the national board of that particular cricketer, just like how it is followed in the IPL. Jofra Archer Set To Be Offered Annual Contract by Mumbai Indians, ECB To Take Permission From IPL Franchise To Select the Bowler for National Duty: Report.
The last rule would be significant if the UAE’s International League T20 (ILT20) and USA’s Major League Cricket (MLC) are kept under consideration. The first edition of the UAE T20 tournament saw the franchises field as many as nine overseas players in the starting XI. For the MLS, which is set to begin later this year, there would be a maximum of six foreign players in the XI and a total of nine in the whole squad. The IPL, one of the biggest T20 franchise cricket competitions all over the world, permits no more than four overseas players in the playing XI. Doing the same for the other leagues, especially the two newer ones—ILT20 and MLC would prevent international cricketers from signing for the franchises, as there would be lesser places to fill.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 14, 2023 10:27 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).