Double standards — Fatigued to play domestic cricket, but not English county!

However, Indian cricketers, far more predictable in their outlook, are singing an old tune. They complain of “excessive cricket” only when they have to duck out of domestic cricket. They state they are too fatigued to play domestic cricket, but still scout around for a lucrative contract with any English county where five months of non-stop cricket and travel will yield an average of Rs one crore, besides a luxury car and a comfortable mansion.

The stars expect the Board, selectors, media and fans to be “understanding” without realising that it would be an unpardonable conspiracy to support them in this mindless sabotage of Indian cricket.

For, in the absence of the stars, domestic cricket is something short of a joke where the fans, sponsors and the Board are repeatedly short-changed. And in such a diluted domestic competition, the true worth of emerging players is virtually impossible to assess.

Consequently, the first inkling the selectors and others have of the limited abilities of the emerging players is when they are thrown into the hot waters of international cricket. There, in front of a world audience, the flaws of the emerging players are highlighted dramatically by television and the entire nation is made to bear the humiliation ball by ball, over by over, match after match. Is this what our egotistical stars want repeated time and again ?

Perhaps, the fault lies with the Board for having permitted earlier players to get away with quite as much. The mantra those days used to be masala matches. One cricketer of the previous generation defended their playing masala matches at the expense of some first class games by stating that in masala matches, players did not have to concentrate and tire themselves. He actually called the masala matches a form of relaxation and an opportunity where bowlers could try out new variations and the batsmen innovative strokes!

Biggest irony: However, the biggest irony was in Karnataka where the Ranji Trophy champions, without the services of some of their stars, lost miserably to Mumbai recently. For once, a player was given a taste of his own medicine.

The chairman of the Karnataka Selection Committee, Syed Kirmani, during his playing days, had on one occasion packed his bags and departed to the Middle-East to play some masala matches. This after being appointed Karnataka skipper for the Ranji Trophy tie to play on the same dates!

The present cricketers probably took a leaf out of his book and scorned their team in its hour of need!

This process will continue forever unless the Board takes some serious steps immediately. In fact, not just Sachin Tendulkar, Javagal Srinath and Sourav Ganguly, many more like Rahul Dravid, Ajay Jadeja, Mohammed Azharuddin, Nayan Mongia, et al would have skipped the Challenger Series if only they had been more successful.

Truly, this contempt for domestic cricket is peculiar only to India. The stars probably feel it is beneath their dignity to play domestic cricket.

So, what’s the solution? The best option would be to hit them where it hurts the most. And that, undoubtedly, is money. Concede to the stars demand for a gradation of payment. But improvise it to give domestic cricket a good deal. Impose a staggered, graded payment system whereby a player would get his full complement of money for Tests and ODIs at the end of each season only if he plays a minimum 50 per cent of his commitment of matches in domestic cricket.

Likewise, all endorsement, sponsorship, county contract, media appearance money should be routed through the Board and payment should be proportionate to the number of domestic matches played annually.

Those who skip domestic cricket for flimsy reasons should receive only the base figure for the Tests, ODIs and endorsements. The rest of the money should be forfeited and given to the player’s favourite charity. The day the Board gets this system going, there will be a beeline for domestic cricket.

Certainly, the time is ripe for some drastic overhauling of the system. Else, Indian cricket will be condemned to an unending series of tamashas.