08 February 2023 , 14:13
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After England white-ball captain Jos Buttler spoke of his "frustrations" at some players opting to skip the upcoming tour of Bangladesh in favour of more lucrative opportunities in franchise cricket, Michael Atherton has issued a stark warning about the future of the sport.
Atherton believes the rise of franchise tournaments across the world mean that international cricket is "being chipped away at", with as many as 60 English players featuring in four different leagues that all overlapped at one point in January.
And Atherton has criticised the sport's administrators for being "asleep at the wheel" when the Indian Premier League (IPL), which is now the second most lucrative sports league in the world behind the NFL in terms of broadcast rights, was first formed in 2008.
"It struck me straightaway with absolute clarity that the obvious consequence of the free market coming into the game was that international cricket, for so long the staple of the game, was going to be challenged," Atherton told Sky Sports. "That has come to pass.
"I was thinking, 'these players are earning 10 times in a month what they are earning in a year, this is going to change the game'. The opportunities now are incredible, for cricketers not necessarily of the top rank.
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"That is good for cricketers but if international cricket is to survive and thrive something has to be done. World Cups will still be strong - although I don't think you want one every year as that dilutes things - and Test cricket between sides that can afford it will be strong but the rest of it is being chipped away at by franchise cricket.
"I think administrators were asleep at the wheel from the start. I am not saying it was easy but if they had got together to organise the calendar then maybe they could have made franchise competitions pay an amount for a window that could go into a Test match fund.
England white-ball captain Jos Buttler recently spoke of his "frustration" at the impact franchise cricket is having on the international game (Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)"There were innovative ways to think about it but they didn't think about it as they cannot see beyond the end of the next pay cheque. The game has been damaged now and I don't see any solutions."
Fellow former England captain Nasser Hussain believes franchise cricket is a "double-edged sword" and warned young players not to be "lured by the cash". He added: "It does concern me that there have been reports of England Lions players not wanting to go on tours because they want to go to T20 leagues.
"That's fine if you are playing but some of the younger players may be carrying the drinks. Sam Billings, as an example, did this and I only ever saw him with a bib on carrying a drink out to someone. He didn't improve, he stagnated, so don't be lured by the cash."