|
ICL find rich harvest in NZ
19/02/2008 07:57 - (SA)
Wellington - The acronyms IPL and ICL seem to be occurring more often than lbw in New Zealand cricket as a tide of Indian money washes up on these southern shores.
New Zealand cricketers have proved particularly susceptible, or vulnerable, to big-money offers to join the officially-sanctioned Indian Premier League or its rival, unsanctioned Indian Cricket League.
At least six and as many as eight have signed or on the verge of signing with the rebel league and several of the Black Caps current Test team have agreed contracts with the IPL, approved by New Zealand Cricket.
Chief executives of the 10 Test-playing nations will meet in Malaysia this week, at the behest of the International Cricket, to discuss the impact of the IPL and ICL on the international game. They will attempt to find a place on the crowded international cricket calendar for the IPL and reaffirm their opposition to the cash-rich and increasingly powerful rebel league.
New Zealand has followed the ICC policy of endorsing the IPL and opposing the ICL but that hasn't prevented it losing top players to both competitions. Shane Bond, New Zealand's most effective fast bowler since Richard Hadlee, has joined the rebel league for a reported New Zealand dollars 800 000 annually and, as a consequence, is no longer being considered for New Zealand selection.
New Zealand's current new ball pair, Chris Martin and Kyle Mills, are the latest players to be linked to the Indian leagues, possibly to the rebel competition.
'A dream result'
Martin admitted the attraction of an Indian offer, and a leaning toward the sanctioned competition.
"A contract with the IPL is the dream result, really," he said.
"To give that up would be a hard thing to do and I suppose for the select few that are able to do both at the moment, it's a situation that a few of the other guys would quite like to be in as well.
"They have great love for playing for New Zealand and they also have an understanding of how they are valued as the future of New Zealand cricket over the next few years."
Reports have emerged of disharmony within the New Zealand dressing room between players with and without Indian contracts, those attracted by the IPL and those lured to the ICL.
Martin said no such rancor exists and that the players have learned to separate their international duties from their dealings with Indian agents.
"It's a fact of life and one that's not going to go away," he said.
"As far as conversations in the dressing room go, perhaps they were a little more secret in the early days. But as the months have gone by it's become commonplace to talk about these things.
Former internationals
"I suppose with key members of the side who aren't signed up and are performing well, then New Zealand Cricket will want to keep them in the country. So you're always going to be linked to Indian money at some stage, for good or bad."
The rebel ICL has already attracted Bond and former internationals Chris Cairns, Craig McMillan, Nathan Astle, Chris Harris, Daryl Tuffey, Hamish Marshall and Andre Adams.
Former captain Stephen Fleming and all-rounder Scott Styris are among the most recent signings for the IPL. Both have recently retired: Fleming from all cricket at the end of the current series against England and Styris from test cricket.
Styris will continue to play limited-overs cricket for New Zealand and attributed his retirement from tests to the physical toll of playing all forms of the game. New Zealand's test program is a light one by most standards and it has been assumed part of Styris' motivation in retiring has been to ensure his fitness and availability for the Indian league.
That reflects a fear in New Zealand that players will begin to place a greater priority on the high-paying Indian competitions than on the international game.
New Zealand Cricket maintains 25 contracted players paid annual retainers on a cascading scale from around NZ$125,000 to NZ$40,000. In addition, players earn match fees for Test and limited-overs appearances and can earn more from sponsorship, endorsements and private business interests.
But the largest income earned by a New Zealander - until recently Fleming was its highest-paid player - cannot match the money available in India.
Martin admitted most players wanted to balance international and IPL or ICL commitments.
"I think perhaps what we are going through right now is a feeling out period between two major television companies who are having a play for what is going to be a billion dollar industry," he said.
"Unfortunately, fringe guys and even current international players are going to be targeted.
"In saying that, while it might be unfortunate, a lot of the guys that are going have put a lot of time into New Zealand cricket and I suppose with the security of their families and financial futures ahead of them, the money is something that any reasonable man with foresight would not turn down."
- AP
|
