Asian cricketers should ditch IPL riches to learn the county game - Dileep

[coffee_rules]

May be there is some truth to it. Look at our T20 stars being ridiculed by the likes of Mills and Tuffey on a "spongy" bounce pitch. http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2010/aug/11/asian-cricket-county-game Asian cricketers should ditch IPL riches to learn the county gameAs greats such as Imran Khan or Kapil Dev have proved, a taste of first-class cricket in England can strengthen the Test credentials of subcontinental players Players such as Umar Akmal could aid their all-round game with a stint in English county cricket. Bishan Singh Bedi. Mushtaq Mohammad. Majid Khan. Farokh Engineer. Zaheer Abbas. Imran Khan. Sunil Gavaskar. Kapil Dev. Javed Miandad. Wasim Akram. Sachin Tendulkar. Aravinda de Silva. Muttiah Muralitharan. Rahul Dravid. All candidates for an all-time Asian XI, and tied together by a common thread – county cricket. Over the past few years, it's become fashionable to run down England's first-class competition. The standard perhaps isn't what it once was with fewer top-quality internationals free in the summer, but there's still a world of experience to be gained for a young prospect. The struggles of Pakistan's callow batting line-up in England, and the toothlessness of India's pace bowlers in Sri Lanka straightaway make one wonder just how much they'd benefit from a finishing school that helped the likes of Vivian Richards and Richard Hadlee. Forget the quality of the opposition. Forget the paltry crowds. Think instead of a variety of venues, and an itinerary that puts the emphasis on match fitness rather than looking like a Manpower model. One week, you could be batting on a placid pitch where boredom is the biggest threat, and the next week will find you struggling to put wood on leather as the ball swings and seams prodigiously in overcast conditions. As a slow bowler, you could revel one week on a dry surface and then get belted the next as the ball moves little off the straight. It adds up to the kind of well-rounded education that every young professional needs. These days, fewer and fewer Asian prospects try their luck on English soil. In some cases, there's opposition bordering on hostility from their boards. And with others, it's the counties that get cold feet, considering them more of a risk than a reliable Kolpak-type signing who'll be around for the full season. In some cases, the barriers placed in front of players make no sense at all. Piyush Chawla was not part of India's Test campaign in Sri Lanka and he isn't playing the one-dayers either. Neither is Yusuf Pathan. But despite Chawla's success at Sussex last season both men were stopped from being part of the county game this year. So was VVS Laxman, whose India appearances these days are restricted to Tests alone. Apart from the pathetic clash of wills with the ECB – Lalit Modi and Giles Clarke specialised in this my-mum's-better-than-yours game – the reason advanced for the players being cotton-woolled is that they'll be too fatigued for assignments later in the season. That would have made sense if all the players hadn't been part of yet another gruelling IPL season. The IPL, with its huge crowds and international cast, is certainly a test of a youngster's temperament, but it hardly prepares him for cricket at the highest level. It was instructive to listen to Rahul Dravid talk about Suresh Raina a couple of months ago, when he was on the cusp of a Test debut. "There will be questions asked of his technique, and he'll be tested physically and emotionally too," said Dravid. "That's why Test cricket is a searching examination that goes on right through your career. In Twenty20 and one-day cricket, you can avoid certain questions. With Test cricket, you need to have all the answers." That pertinent point has been beautifully illustrated during Pakistan's tour of England. Umar Akmal's career started off with some eye-catching innings, but in four Tests under challenging conditions, he hasn't once crossed 22. It's not that he's become a bad player overnight. It's just that he's confronting situations for which no amount of domestic cricket in India or Pakistan can equip you. In the old days, when the Headingley scoreboard showed 0 for 4, players from east of Suez and west of Malacca weren't considered good enough for a county side. In fact, Vinoo Mankad was called up for the Lord's Test of 1952 while playing for Haslingden in the Lancashire leagues. What he did in that game did more for the profile of Indian cricket than much of what had taken place in the previous two decades, and there will be many Bangladeshis who hope that Tamim Iqbal's heroics earlier this summer are the start of something special rather than an aberration. Players such as Chawla and even Ishant Sharma would benefit immeasurably from a few weeks on the county circuit. They only need to look at the man who was India's bowling talisman when they won in England in 2007. Zaheer Khan had been dropped and was on the road to nowhere when he pitched up at New Road in 2006. After 78 wickets at a measly average, he was back in the fold for a tour of South Africa. He's seldom looked back since. "The best part about county cricket is you get to play non-stop and you're doing stuff absolutely on your own," said Zaheer in an interview last year. "You are not in a familiar environment. That forces you to think much more. If you are serious, it improves your game." Ishant has had three mediocre seasons of IPL. He may have banked close to $3 million (£1.9m) in that time, but has only regressed as a bowler. And while those who have worked with him at the national level deserve some of the blame, his decline has become Exhibit A in the clash between traditional cricket and the 20-over version. Once your technique is as well-honed as Tendulkar's or Glenn McGrath's, it doesn't matter what form of cricket you play. McGrath bowled some sublime spells in the first season of IPL, in withering summer heat. Tendulkar was top scorer last season. Just as Mozart had no trouble composing nursery rhymes, so great cricketers transcend formats. But when you see Umar Akmal flailing at a ball two feet outside off stump, you wonder how much Twenty20 has wreaked havoc with unpolished techniques. The subcontinent places so much emphasis on limited-overs cricket, with its shirtfront pitches and one-bouncer rule, that batting at Headingley or Edgbaston becomes a Rubik's Cube in the hand of a toddler. These days, A team tours aim to correct such glitches, but those who really need the experience seldom find a place there. Instead, they rot away in some academy or on the senior bench, waiting for chances that never come. And the county deals that they agreed in principle go to a South African or Australian, who then uses it as a springboard to something better. When Pakistan cricket was at its strongest, they boasted a squad whose key members had all been steeled in the county crucible. That's no longer the case, and if the successors to the Majid-Zaheer-Javed tradition are not half as good, it's also because they haven't had anything like the same exposure. The Pakistan Cricket Board is a prime candidate for reviving the Carry On series, so farcical are some of its decisions, but if they want to do something right, they should tell Mohammad Irfan, the seven-foot giant, to forget about the Kolkata Knight Riders and look to England instead.

[msb1991]

It is a point often made on these forums how the greats of the past spent several seasons honing their trade in county cricket. It is good to see the point raised on Cricinfo by a top writer and hopefully the BCCI will sit up and take notice. We have so many bowlers and batsmen who could dominate in the county circuit and would be well worth their place, we just need the BCCI to stop being so hostile with players who do try to make a move to CC.

[cowboysfan]

the overreaction one freaking game after the result was known (after dhoni lost the toss)is just ridiculous.Did anybody say the same things about sri-lanka after they lost the Asia cup in similar fashion?.bunch of nitwits pretending to be journalists.

[Sooda]

^I think its got nothing to do with that match, he's just making a general point on how Indian players can learn from county stints, he's right too!

[Karan114]

^I think its got nothing to do with that match' date=' he's just making a general point on how Indian players can learn from county stints, he's right too![/quote'] Yeah...the only mention he makes of the current series is "the toothlessness of India's pace bowlers in Sri Lanka" which is clearly referring to the Test series anyways. Can't disagree much with the article, one only needs to see Zaheer Khan's resurgence as a Test cricketer after a full season at Worcestershire. There is a lot to be gained for those willing to put in the hard work but unfortunately the BCCI keeps acting against the broader interests of Indian cricket.

[Tendulkar_Bhai]

Its essential for these players to develop as great Test match players like Laxman/Ganguly/Tendulkar/Shewag etc ALL who played for county teams and experienced different condfitions, it doesnt have to be for long periods but a few months would be invaluable. I dont however agree it should be instead of IPL, why cant they do both, whats Pujara, Tiwary, SreeSanth, Munaf etc doing right now???

[achilles]

Agree partially. County stints would help. But players need the money to survive and run their families. (Ref:Tino Best's outburst when asked why he's joining ICL). Also, England's favourite Indian son writes another article to take an opportunistic dig at something Indian. Not surprising at all.

[jf1gp_1]

I dont understand why everything has to be linked to money; couldnt he just stop at go play county cricket and improve your game and if he did want to bring in money they why just stop at cricketers why not Indians in other professions; how come i dont see him preach stop working on that windows 7 service pack go work on chandrayaan 2.

[Gunner_Mania]

I dont understand why everything has to be linked to money; couldnt he just stop at go play county cricket and improve your game and if he did want to bring in money they why just stop at cricketers why not Indians in other professions; how come i dont see him preach stop working on that windows 7 service pack go work on chandrayaan 2.

Its may be because he is a sports journalist..oh and btw if you work on the chandrayaan 2 there is not a lot you are going to learn that would be useful on a windows 7 service pack.

[Gunner_Mania]

Agree partially. County stints would help. But players need the money to survive and run their families. (Ref:Tino Best's outburst when asked why he's joining ICL). Also, England's favourite Indian son writes another article to take an opportunistic dig at something Indian. Not surprising at all.

You know Counties too pay right? and if you do well and improve your game you have a better chance for performing for India which in turn is likely to improve your going rate at the IPL too. Don't tell me that players who played for India before the IPL didnt run their families and those who slog for the Ranji teams and have not gotten picked for IPL or India don't run their families either. May be we generally think anybody who criticizes Indian team always has an hidden agenda or is taking an opportunistic dig.

[Chandan]

You know Counties too pay right? and if you do well and improve your game you have a better chance for performing for India which in turn is likely to improve your going rate at the IPL too. Don't tell me that players who played for India before the IPL didnt run their families and those who slog for the Ranji teams and have not gotten picked for IPL or India don't run their families either. May be we generally think anybody who criticizes Indian team always has an hidden agenda or is taking an opportunistic dig.

1. Indian board won't allow IPL to suffer for the good of player. 2. Why will a county take a player like Pujara who has no experience in these conditions and his class is unproven too? Counties aren't doing any charity there. They sign overseas players to improve their chances of winning the championship. 3. Why will a player accept 1/10th of the money that he is paid in IPL for the counties? Securing the future the their first aim and they'll never be stupid enough to let that opportunity go. Will Duleep work for my apartment newspaper for pea nuts, just because it may make him understand the ground realities and the problems that a young child has to face here when playing cricket?

[achilles]

You know Counties too pay right? and if you do well and improve your game you have a better chance for performing for India which in turn is likely to improve your going rate at the IPL too. Don't tell me that players who played for India before the IPL didnt run their families and those who slog for the Ranji teams and have not gotten picked for IPL or India don't run their families either. May be we generally think anybody who criticizes Indian team always has an hidden agenda or is taking an opportunistic dig.

If counties pay decent money, why do players die to play in the IPL? Its anybody's guess. And lets not even start the discussion about how players used to lead their lives before the current boom in cricket. They used to be bus conductors, vegetable vendors, mechanics, clerks and what not. It all started to change after the 1983 World Cup win. Yet, you sure can make out the difference of lifestyles between Kapil Dev and his less-facied teammates. Its human nature to aim for the top and work to reach that. I can't, won't and never will blame the players for securing their families and making sure their child goes to the best school in town, their wives lead a comfortable life and the players themselves after turning 38ish and retire, have something to recline on. Look at the world we are living in today. Food prices touching the roof, house rents, car prices... its difficult to maintain your standard of living. What highlights this is the constant chat in countries like NZ, West Indies, Bangladesh, even South Africa (whose players leave their nation for England coz they earn more money there) that its difficult to pass off earning millions of dollars to play domestic and international. Tino Best- "It's a little sad, but I can't go to the supermarket and say that my name is Tino Best, I bowl at 90 miles an hour, I want $400 in groceries," Best told Barbados daily the Nation. "People will ask me if I'm going mad. It is about securing myself and my family. It was a very tough [decision], but at the end of the day you have to live. I'm not a carpenter, a lawyer or a doctor. I'm a cricketer. I have to apply my trade to survive." Brendon McCullum - "I get a bit disappointed when I read that I don't give a rat's a*** about playing for my country. The only reason the inference disappoints me is that I know the sacrifice I made to play for New Zealand," he wrote. "In what other industry would you be expected to take options that cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars?" NZ team refused to sign their contracts, English players put theirs on hold and Sri Lanka didn't travel to England to play the entire IPL. There are many more instances. What Dileep & you say sounds good in Utopia. We however live in Distopia.

[King Tendulkar]

Disagree county cricketers in england should ditch county cricket and play in Ranji. They should forget about the extra money from county cricketers asnd play in indian domestic cricket to improve themselves. Instead they seem happy to chase county cricket contracts and fill their bank balances. That is why they have not beaten India in a test series since 1996 (14 long years ago) and why India are ranked NUMBER 1 in the world and they are lowly down the list.

[achilles]

2. Why will a county take a player like Pujara who has no experience in these conditions and his class is unproven too? Counties aren't doing any charity there. They sign overseas players to improve their chances of winning the championship. 3. Why will a player accept 1/10th of the money that he is paid in IPL for the counties? Securing the future the their first aim and they'll never be stupid enough to let that opportunity go. Will Duleep work for my apartment newspaper for pea nuts, just because it may make him understand the ground realities and the problems that a young child has to face here when playing cricket?

Disagree county cricketers in england should ditch county cricket and play in Ranji. They should forget about the extra money from county cricketers asnd play in indian domestic cricket to improve themselves. Instead they seem happy to chase county cricket contracts and fill their bank balances. That is why they have not beaten India in a test series since 1996 (14 long years ago) and why India are ranked NUMBER 1 in the world and they are lowly down the list.

No, the logic just works one way. Only Asians should ditch riches and play for peanuts and think about "cricket". However, its completely fine to do away with 50 over domestic games, play more Pro-40, 2 inng-one dayers and hypocritically criticize India's IPL, Indians and anything from the subcontinent coz its the more fancied thing to do, right?

[Sachinism]

1. Indian board won't allow IPL to suffer for the good of player. 2. Why will a county take a player like Pujara who has no experience in these conditions and his class is unproven too? Counties aren't doing any charity there. They sign overseas players to improve their chances of winning the championship. 3. Why will a player accept 1/10th of the money that he is paid in IPL for the counties? Securing the future the their first aim and they'll never be stupid enough to let that opportunity go. Will Duleep work for my apartment newspaper for pea nuts, just because it may make him understand the ground realities and the problems that a young child has to face here when playing cricket?

Counties have approached Indian players, its BBCI who've then denied them the opportunity to play elsewhere. And I'm sure not all players will be worried too much about the money, I'm sure there are some who would like the experience and challenge. And its not like they get paid minimum wage or something playing for counties

[Lord]

one side we've guys like McCullum admitting they considered not playing for thier country n play for IPL,n here we have this journalist telling us that they should leave IPL riches for freaking county cricket:hahaha:

[EnterTheVoid]

3. Why will a player accept 1/10th of the money that he is paid in IPL for the counties? Securing the future the their first aim and they'll never be stupid enough to let that opportunity go. Will Duleep work for my apartment newspaper for pea nuts' date= just because it may make him understand the ground realities and the problems that a young child has to face here when playing cricket?

Isn't the logic the other way around ? You go to county, you hone your skills, you improve your overall game after which you will get selected by the franchises. I know thats not how the selection for the IPL franchises was made but still, :dontknow:

[King]

What is wrong with the Indian domestic cricket? Why should these players only play in English county and develop? Ranji trophy is good enough to develop cricket don't you think in particular the bowlers. We have that in NZ in abundant. Tailor made pitches for the seam bowlers make them bowl dibbly dobbly balls and still get wickets. When they go overseas with less assistance in the air and off the pitch the bowlers come a cropper. There have been many bowlers English cricket has dished out and have been pushed back to oblivion. James Kirtley, Tremlett and the likes come to mind. Anderson is now successful but he has not gone better with more stint in English county cricket but just by experience. County cricket is demanding and provides players opportunities to play almost every day but that's about it. The quality of cricket is still not the best in county cricket barring a few. There are so many mediocre players in county cricket as well. Whatever happened to Monty Panesar? He's been playing fair bit of county cricket. How come his form deserted him? In fact it is the other way around, after the central contract was put in place England has been doing much better.

[Sachinism]

What is wrong with the Indian domestic cricket? Why should these players only play in English county and develop? Ranji trophy is good enough to develop cricket don't you think in particular the bowlers. We have that in NZ in abundant. Tailor made pitches for the seam bowlers make them bowl dibbly dobbly balls and still get wickets. When they go overseas with less assistance in the air and off the pitch the bowlers come a cropper. There have been many bowlers English cricket has dished out and have been pushed back to oblivion. James Kirtley, Tremlett and the likes come to mind. Anderson is now successful but he has not gone better with more stint in English county cricket but just by experience. County cricket is demanding and provides players opportunities to play almost every day but that's about it. The quality of cricket is still not the best in county cricket barring a few. There are so many mediocre players in county cricket as well. Whatever happened to Monty Panesar? He's been playing fair bit of county cricket. How come his form deserted him? In fact it is the other way around, after the central contract was put in place England has been doing much better.

They get the opportunity to place in different conditions and different surfaces. So when they get selected after plundering runs on the flat tracks in India, they're not all at sea when playing on a green or bouncy wicket

[King]

They get the opportunity to place in different conditions and different surfaces. So when they get selected after plundering runs on the flat tracks in India' date=' they're not all at sea when playing on a green or bouncy wicket[/quote'] That could be said of the English bowlers too, they are wonderful at home where the ball swings and seams but are all at sea when playing outside English conditions. I'm still not convinced with the likes of Swann and Finn. I'd like to see how they will shape up when they play in Australia or in Sub Continent. Last time around England were routed in Australia 5-0, the English players were all adept at playing county cricket. Whatever happened then? In fact when India played England in England couple of years ago, RP Singh, Sreesanth and Zaheer were unplayable. RP and Sreesanth had not had a stint in the county cricket then though? I think the writer is riding the wave of ditch the IPL and too much money factor. I don't think there is any truth whatsoever in it. If you look at Ishant Sharma, he has played majority of cricket in sub continent conditions. I'm not for one moment saying Ishant Sharma is a top bowler at the moment and if you search through even the first time I saw him bowl I thought he was one dimensional. He proved that wrong with his sub sequent bowling performances in Australia. Still I'm sure Anderson was not any better than Ishant Sharma after about 2-3 years time since his debut. Sehwag is a product of Indian domestic cricket and so is Gambhir. How come they developed into fantastic cricketers? Rahul had couple of seasons of county cricket but most of his cricket was developed in India. Similarly VVS played honed most of his skills in India so did Sachin Tendulkar. The only season Sachin Tendulkar played in England didn't really make such a difference. As for Pakistani batsmen, they were always dodgy barring a few. They have produced good fast bowlers and always relied on bowling to win games. In the past their team was capable of scoring 300-400 but now the team that is loaded with new comers can't get past 200. That has nothing to do with IPL in my opinion.