Shahid Afridi is cricket's first hired gun

Bat and ball / Paul Moon / 31 October 2009 / Leave a Comment

National hero. Shahid Afridi is Pakistan's most popular player and his decision to call it a day as regards Test cricket could the catalyst for others to follow suit.

Test cricket fan Paul Moon is full of praise for the explosively entertaining Shahid Afridi but less complimentary towards his decision to retire from Test cricket aged just 29 so he can travel the globe playing for the highest bidder in the shorter versions of the game...

Test cricket is the absolute essence of the game and its purity must be preserved at all cost. If this becomes threatened or even disturbed, then the ICC has a duty to step in to uphold its integrity.

Sadly, it is inevitable that individual cricketers will now be deciding whether to represent their country and continue playing Test cricket or go freelance and opt for dollar-laden tournaments. This new creed could lead to super teams being generated from outside their regions, rendering names of the sides meaningless. There is even a danger that Twenty20 could rule cricket.

At the moment we are experiencing a trickle of defectors but the hole has been breached and we can expect a flood within the next 12 months as the 'cricket gun for hire' mentality clicks in. So far there have been extenuating circumstances regarding those opting out of Test cricket; nonetheless there is a wind of change.

Injury-prone Andrew Flintoff quit Test cricket because he could not sustain another Test Series. It was easy for him to reject an incremental contract from England to become the game's first freelancer. He has reportedly been the target of interest from South Australia and Northerns in South Africa and coded language coming out of Lancashire is that he will use the county game for commercial and fitness purposes only. Repercussions will follow!

Australian larrikin Andrew Symonds, who did not have a contract to accept or reject, cannot be considered a freelance but New Zealander all-rounder Jacob Oram (31) can. He announced the end of his sporadic 33-Test career citing a desire for longevity. He is currently earning US$675,000 a year with the IPL's Chennai Super Kings and wants to prolong his one-day and Twenty20 career.

Sensational and alarming news is that the most popular cricketer in Pakistan has ditched Test cricket! The flamboyant Shahid Afridi (29) has clearly decided he can live without the honour of representing his country in the longest version of the game. He is not a poor man so does not come into the 'must top up the pension quick' category. Having no injury worries and age on his side, the decision is regretful and will soon be emulated by other Asian cricketers.

It is true that he has not played a Test match for three years but cricket desperately need characters like him. The consequences of his actions are a net loss to cricket generally and send out a disturbing signal regarding honour!

Who is next? Could that person be the callous Chris Gayle? He has mercilessly said that he doesn't care if Test cricket dies altogether and he must be close to jumping ship after protracted money wranglings with the WICB. He has already joined the Warriors (Western Australia) as a marquee Twenty20 player this summer. Teammate Dwayne Bravo is doing likewise with Victoria while New Zealand wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum played for New South Wales last season.

Bidding wars from these teams make freelance more attractive and undermine Test cricket! It is now possible to play for six teams on five different continents in the space of a year and this does not augur well for Test cricket. Somehow the ICC need to synchronise global co-operation, otherwise the new generation will naturally follow this path.

Perhaps IPL boss Lalit Modi holds a key. He has publicly denounced players who cut back their international commitments but continue to play in the Twenty20 league. Ostracising players with a restraint of trade is not really an option, nor is waiting for things to transpire. It is going to need someone with a vision overview of shaping cricket's future. This includes looking at the new wave of player power, the market place and NOCs (no objection certificates). Somehow one doubts this brave person exists within the ICC.