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Will the birth of the Indian Premier League signal the death of international cricket?

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Pablo Luna - Moonlighting for Betfair. Pablo considers whether the riches of the Indian Premier League allied with the Kolpak ruling may rob International Cricket of it's star performers

I am truly aghast at the lack of action and response from the ECB regarding the latest developments and repercussions of the Kolpak Ruling, the Indian Premier League and the Indian Cricket League! I warned everyone on 10 January 2008 on this site that the cricket hierarchy had to move fast if they want to address the movement of cricketers to different leagues and competitions. It is about to become a jamboree. See: http://betting.betfair.com/cricket/bat-and-ball/nothing-secret-about-bonds-intentions-to-join-the-100108.html

You cannot fault individuals seeking to get the best deal for themselves! Surely most of us would do the same? As devotees of the game should we be concerned with this? Should the National Teams be paying their players more? What impact does it have on the International Game? These are some of the questions that necessitate honest answers.

I do not subscribe to the view that you must have eleven English born players in a team to produce a good International side. In fact the opposite, I believe that foreigners enhance our league and improve our younger players, as does those footballers in our Premiership. It is a delight to watch class players in the flesh and this gives us the opportunity to do so.

We do need seven or eight players of the team to be English though! We must endeavour to improve our pool of players within the County set-up. I am less concerned with ordinary players, they can find another job. Somehow we must develop our dreadful County game. It is in its death throes and I am not sure how to resuscitate it! Any ideas?

In England the ECB has linked the central payments made to counties by subtracting £1,100 every game a foreigner plays for a County to discourage more Kolpak seekers but if they put the penalty at £5,000 per game that just might stop it. For those who want more information on what the Kolpak Rulings mean, please visit: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/3529413.stm

The ECB currently pay 13 of our super elite centrally contracted players somewhere between £250,000 to £400,000 per year so clearly our top players are well looked after and this made it easy for Kevin 'not yet' Pietersen to turn down playing in the Indian Premier League. Individual Sponsorships adds to those huge wage packets! Other countries pay considerably less so there is more of a temptation for players to abscond.

Regrettably sides like New Zealand and the West Indies are suffering most.

The real problem is twin-track cricket with the advent of the IPL and the ICL. Paymasters wrestle each other in a cricket war to get the best individuals signed up. The days of the ICC creaming off cricket is about to end, the IPL and the ICL are threatening to take the game away from the administrators and give it to the players and agents! Cricket is at the crossroads and the next step is vital! It is up to the Cricketing Nations to act together now to set parameters! They need to instigate a moratorium to discuss a positive way forward.

If the officially sanctioned IPL, which starts on 18 April 2008, is successful (and I think it will) it will gather pace and extend to other countries. This will mean more limited over cricket, more premature retirements from International Cricket and more allegiance to the new format. It is possible it could destroy ambition in playing Tests for your country. For 44 days some players have been promised a $1,000,000 for their services. We are in uncharted territory. There will be consequences unforeseen! Because England are playing New Zealand while the IPL competition runs means there are no England names involved but what odds they will be there next year? I absolutely guarantee that they will!

Cricket Australia is not happy with these developments, it endangers traditional cricket. Ponting, Hayden, Hussey, Symonds, Bracken and Lee are just some who will be plying their trade on the subcontinent, how will it affect their attitude afterwards? It will affect Indians Dhoni, Ganguly and Tendulkar less. They are already rich beyond dreams and live daily with the religious fervour that is cricket in India. Players from other countries will find it impossible in future to ignore the lure of the cash rich IPL and ICL. See: http://www.indianpremierleaguevsindiancricketleague.com/

Cricket is about to change dramatically! The IPL commences on 18 April and clashes with the start of the English season. IPL organiser Lalit Modi has confirmed most of the England players want to play in the competition. India are now calling the shots, they are now the most financially dominant cricket nation and we must decide if we are for or against!

• Cricket
• Indian Premier League - IPL