‘Bilateral cricket will suffer’ - Ravi Shastri ponders over effect of T20 leagues on international matches

With the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, many of the world’s biggest names are present at the tournament and representing their respective franchises in arguably the world’s biggest T20 league. Furthermore, there have been several reports claiming that the franchises are looking to hand long-term contracts to the players, which could see their focus shift completely towards franchise cricket.

With cricket heading towards being quite similar to football, former India cricketer Ravi Shastri came forward and opined that with the rapid rise of T20 leagues around the world, bilateral cricket could be expected to take a hit, especially ODI cricket.

"I have always said that bilateral cricket will suffer; there is no question about that. With the leagues spreading around the world, it’s going to go the football way," Shastri was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

"The teams will assemble just before the World Cup; they play a little bit of bilateral; clubs will release the players; and you play the mega World Cup. So it’s going to go that way in the long run, whether you like it or not. I don’t feel bad at all; one of the faculties of the game will suffer. I think it will be 50-over cricket," he added.

Look at the volume of people in this country: Shastri

With leagues like the IPL, Pakistan Super League (PSL), Big Bash League (BBL), and many more gaining traction across the globe, Ravi Shastri reflected on the fact that he understands the shift towards league cricket as, with the volume of people in India, only 11 are able to represent the national team at a time.

"Look at the volume of people in this country; we are 1.4 billion, and only 11 can play for India, What will the others do? They have an opportunity to play white-ball cricket; it’s their strength globally, across different franchises in the world. Grab that opportunity. It’s common sense; it’s their living. It’s their income. Nobody will be able to deprive them of this. They (players) are not contracted by the BCCI. What stops them going?" Shastri said.