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Post by hhsussex on Dec 9, 2016 9:17:57 GMT
I believe Mr May attended a meeting of the 18 county chairmen yesterday (it may have been fewer than 18 if Durham's new chairman is still in India). The consensus was that the city tournament will go ahead. Formal vote expected in March, when it will require two-thirds of the votes of the ECB's members, according to the Times this morning. If true this is strange because it effectively hands the decision to the chairmen of the non f/c counties, who outnumber the f/c counties by 21 to 18. Messrs May, Andrew and Filby had better start lobbying Suffolk and Berkshire etc if they are still set on trying to stop the new tournament! Mind you, the Times story isn't entirely credible. First it reckons the ECB has 39 members but the ECB website says there are 41. The Times also reckons Surrey might not allow The Oval to be used and the ECB might move the games to Beckenham.
Perhaps it is just an attempt to buy off the opposition of Kent. But it is not going to happen. Beckenham is barely fit for T20 Blast let alone hosting 20,000 and even if Surrey take their bat, ball and ground away, there's the Olympic Stadium. it seems Lizzy Ammon has taken another flier! That part of the story at least sounds pure South London Catering Company propaganda, planted deliberately. No doubt Surrey will drive a hard bargain, but at the end of the day both the ECB and the Oval management- whether from motives of Surrey CCC altruism or otherwise -need some of the matches in the new tournament to be played there, and therefore it will happen.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 9, 2016 9:45:14 GMT
If the formal vote is in March, it strikes me that Rob Andrew - who doesn't take up his post until January - is going to have just a few very short weeks to achieve the objectives he set out for Sussex.
This is what he said: “We are not dead-set against change and know cricket needs to adapt but can we just have a bit more information? What does the season look like? Is there still a county T20 competition? Where’s the championship? How does it fit? What are the teams called? Who’s playing? We don’t want super-counties emerging, because then it’s them and us. Everyone wants the best for the game but the devil is in the detail when it’s this important. Self-interest is inevitable. We want to know Sussex has a big part to play in the future."
Well, he's going to have little more than two months in his new post to achieve all that!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 9, 2016 13:57:43 GMT
I believe Mr May attended a meeting of the 18 county chairmen yesterday (it may have been fewer than 18 if Durham's new chairman is still in India). The consensus was that the city tournament will go ahead. Formal vote expected in March, when it will require two-thirds of the votes of the ECB's members, according to the Times this morning. If true this is strange because it effectively hands the decision to the chairmen of the non f/c counties, who outnumber the f/c counties by 21 to 18. Messrs May, Andrew and Filby had better start lobbying Suffolk and Berkshire etc if they are still set on trying to stop the new tournament! Mind you, the Times story isn't entirely credible. First it reckons the ECB has 39 members but the ECB website says there are 41. The Times also reckons Surrey might not allow The Oval to be used and the ECB might move the games to Beckenham.
Perhaps it is just an attempt to buy off the opposition of Kent. But it is not going to happen. Beckenham is barely fit for T20 Blast let alone hosting 20,000 and even if Surrey take their bat, ball and ground away, there's the Olympic Stadium. it seems Lizzy Ammon has taken another flier! That part of the story at least sounds pure South London Catering Company propaganda, planted deliberately. No doubt Surrey will drive a hard bargain, but at the end of the day both the ECB and the Oval management- whether from motives of Surrey CCC altruism or otherwise -need some of the matches in the new tournament to be played there, and therefore it will happen. Yes, Ms Ammon has got herself into deep water over this and The Times will be furious with her. This is what Kent's press officer has this morning tweeted about her story: <ECB deny it, we deny it, let's run with it!>
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Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2016 15:36:14 GMT
The Times has got hold of the ECB's draft schedule for 2020, which makes it clear that there will not be eight 'super counties' but eight entirely new brands - which answers one of Sussex's objections and may be why in a separate story today, the Times reports that Sussex's opposition has softened and the club is now "warming to the ECB’s preference". If so well done Rob Andrew, because any warming at all seemed unthinkable under the implacable old guard.
The other noteable points are that (i) there will be a draft , so even players from TMG counties will only have a one in eight chance of ending up playing at their regular county base, and that (ii) the county championship will be suspended in July and August while the new comp takes place and grounds such as Hove will instead host 50 over matches in a competition involving all 18 f/c counties with the possible addition of the stronger minor counties.
There is no mention of the exiting T20 Blast but my assumption is that it will revert to its old Friday night slot in May and June.
This is The Times story:
Fifty-over cricket will be relegated firmly to the bottom of England’s domestic priorities when the city-based 20-over tournament begins, but the County Championship is to be spared a clash with the new competition.
A report circulated to the ECB board this week includes a draft schedule for the 2020 season in which the city-based event spans 38 days across July and August at the exact time of the 50-over campaign. Even the finals will coincide.
The presentation, seen by The Times, states that “good quality cricket is required during the new T20 competition in locations other than where the new competition is played — for members to enjoy and for players to play”.
However, with a three-match series against Sri Lanka taking away the Test stars, and close to 100 leading white-ball players earmarked for the fresh Twenty20 tournament, the 50-over competition may feel like a second-team affair. Discussions are understood to have taken place over whether to include minor counties.
Ironically, what amounts to a downgrade will occur in 2020, the year after the 50-over World Cup is staged in England. Andrew Strauss, the managing director of England cricket, has made victory on home soil a priority of his tenure. But, as proposals stand, there would be no 50-over county cricket for the best white-ball players to prepare for ODI status thereafter.
The report on the new T20 tournament also says that:
Players will be allocated in a draft designed as “a key marketing hook”. This means that established figures may find themselves away from their long-term home and supporter-base for the duration of the event.
Salary caps will promote “equalisation” of teams so that “all should have a fair chance of winning it every year”.
Team brands will not be those of existing counties — in other words, the side based at Headingley will not be “Yorkshire”.
A free-to-air component of broadcasting rights is considered “essential, as is the right digital carve-out to match the media behaviour of our target audiences”.
The County Championship will not be reduced further after being cut from 16 to 14 matches next season.
A development group working on the project comprises four ECB marketing officers plus the chief executives of Somerset (Guy Lavender), Nottinghamshire (Lisa Pursehouse) and the Professional Cricketers’ Association (David Leatherdale).
Counties mandated the ECB in September to conduct further research into a competition that Tom Harrison, the chief executive, and Colin Graves, the chairman, believe is essential to boost participation and generate more lucrative media deals. Only Sussex, Surrey and Kent voted against, but others, including Essex and Somerset, stressed that final support depended on specific details after consultation with members. Graves has continued to meet counties to try to quash lingering unease. A source within cricket, made aware of the report, welcomed the answers to some of the questions that have sparked concern, but expressed doubts about the clash with the 50-over competition. “If the ECB is planning to sell tickets for the new event centrally there may be competition with counties trying to promote and sell their own fixtures,” he said. “That would seem odd, especially with a Test series also ongoing as another attraction.”
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Post by hhsussex on Dec 20, 2016 15:51:51 GMT
The Times has got hold of the ECB's draft schedule for 2020, which makes it clear that there will not be eight 'super counties' but eight entirely new brands - which answers one of Sussex's objections and may be why in a separate story today, the Times reports that Sussex's opposition has softened and the club is now "warming to the ECB’s preference". If so well done Rob Andrew, because any warming at all seemed unthinkable under the implacable old guard. The other noteable points are that (i) there will be a draft , so even players from TMG counties will only have a one in eight chance of ending up playing at their regular county base, and that (ii) the county championship will be suspended in July and August while the new comp takes place and grounds such as Hove will instead host 50 over matches in a competition involving all 18 f/c counties with the possible addition of the stronger minor counties. There is no mention of the exiting T20 Blast but my assumption is that it will revert to its old Friday night slot in May and June. This is The Times story:
Fifty-over cricket will be relegated firmly to the bottom of England’s domestic priorities when the city-based 20-over tournament begins, but the County Championship is to be spared a clash with the new competition.
A report circulated to the ECB board this week includes a draft schedule for the 2020 season in which the city-based event spans 38 days across July and August at the exact time of the 50-over campaign. Even the finals will coincide.
The presentation, seen by The Times, states that “good quality cricket is required during the new T20 competition in locations other than where the new competition is played — for members to enjoy and for players to play”.
However, with a three-match series against Sri Lanka taking away the Test stars, and close to 100 leading white-ball players earmarked for the fresh Twenty20 tournament, the 50-over competition may feel like a second-team affair. Discussions are understood to have taken place over whether to include minor counties.
Ironically, what amounts to a downgrade will occur in 2020, the year after the 50-over World Cup is staged in England. Andrew Strauss, the managing director of England cricket, has made victory on home soil a priority of his tenure. But, as proposals stand, there would be no 50-over county cricket for the best white-ball players to prepare for ODI status thereafter.
The report on the new T20 tournament also says that:
Players will be allocated in a draft designed as “a key marketing hook”. This means that established figures may find themselves away from their long-term home and supporter-base for the duration of the event.
Salary caps will promote “equalisation” of teams so that “all should have a fair chance of winning it every year”.
Team brands will not be those of existing counties — in other words, the side based at Headingley will not be “Yorkshire”.
A free-to-air component of broadcasting rights is considered “essential, as is the right digital carve-out to match the media behaviour of our target audiences”.
The County Championship will not be reduced further after being cut from 16 to 14 matches next season.
A development group working on the project comprises four ECB marketing officers plus the chief executives of Somerset (Guy Lavender), Nottinghamshire (Lisa Pursehouse) and the Professional Cricketers’ Association (David Leatherdale).
Counties mandated the ECB in September to conduct further research into a competition that Tom Harrison, the chief executive, and Colin Graves, the chairman, believe is essential to boost participation and generate more lucrative media deals. Only Sussex, Surrey and Kent voted against, but others, including Essex and Somerset, stressed that final support depended on specific details after consultation with members. Graves has continued to meet counties to try to quash lingering unease. A source within cricket, made aware of the report, welcomed the answers to some of the questions that have sparked concern, but expressed doubts about the clash with the 50-over competition. “If the ECB is planning to sell tickets for the new event centrally there may be competition with counties trying to promote and sell their own fixtures,” he said. “That would seem odd, especially with a Test series also ongoing as another attraction.”Thanks for posting this borderman. I agree, the avoidance of county names and the insistence on a draft being used to select players disposes of a couple of the main objections from the traditionalists, and was very much what most of us hoped would be the case. The supposed "downgrading" of the 50 over competition is no more than what is deserved. It is an idea that has outlived its usefulness and now needs to be reviewed to see whether there is something in it worth saving. I wonder if the concept of it being draughted in to run alongside the city-based tournament is one that has been put in at the insistence of the CEOs and Chairmen who feel that the county championship would be somewhow blemished by being held concurrently with the 20 over game? I think there could be a bit more manouevreing on this before it is all settled.
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Dec 20, 2016 16:47:13 GMT
I am somewhat bemused by this Times report.
First, I always presumed it would be 8 completely different teams rather than 'super counties': Second, ECBs Sanjay Patel stated at the Sussex meeting that no championship cricket would be played during the tournament; Third, given this farcical 50 over competition was contrived by the ECB primarily because of England & Wales holding the World Cup from 30 May to 15 July 2019, thankfully, we can forget about its importance come 2020. Interestingly, This will be the 12th Cricket World Cup 50 over competition, and the fifth time it will be held in England and Wales, following the 1975, 1979, 1983 and 1999 tournaments.
Meanwhile, I would return it to the far more popular 40 overs. Holding such a competition during the CBT makes a lot of sense. As for the present county T20 'Blast', I am still not sure how they are going to fit this in. This appears to be the square peg in a round hole.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2016 18:07:52 GMT
I am somewhat bemused by this Times report. First, I always presumed it would be 8 completely different teams rather than 'super counties': Surrey and I think may be Yorks have been pushing very hard for 'super counties'. Indeed, it is the whole basis for Surrey's opposition and I was told last week that their current position is that they have informed the ECB that they will not allow the Oval to be used unless the team is called Surrey. That was how the utterly daft story got in The Times that the ECB were considering Beckenham as an alternative. I was subsequently contacted by the writer of the Beckenham story who was 100 per cent adamant that the ECB have discussed Beckenham as a possible venue. If true, then the ECB officials concerned cannot have ever been to the ground and they must have dismissed the idea within two minutes, once they realised that there is only one stand and no floodlights and it would cost them £10 million to turn it into a ground fit for the kind of Rolls Royce tournament the ECB is planning to create. I like the idea of the players' draft because that represents the ultimate break with any notion of regional 'super counties' in which Chris Jordan and Luke Wright automatically moved to the nearest available side. They're just as likely to be playing for Manchester Madcaps and Leeds Layabouts as the London Louche or the Southampton Schemers. Meanwhile, according to the World's Worst Cricket Reporter over in Chenai, it's all the fault of the ECB's obssession with T20 and the new city tournament that England have been humiliated 4-0 by India. But it's odd how the land of the IPL can still produced batsmen capable of occupying the crease for days on end and spin bowlers who are not defined by bowling maximum spells of four overs, even though they only play half the amount of domestic four day cricket as is played in the county championship...
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Post by gmdf on Feb 1, 2017 13:44:45 GMT
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Post by Wicked Cricket on Feb 1, 2017 14:13:49 GMT
gmdf,
Thank you for posting that article and a very fair synopsis from Derek Pringle.
The interview with Jim May published on the Wicked Cricket Blog this week highlights how, almost certainly, the 17 counties + MCC, will say "yes" to the City-Based Tournament once the detail is sorted. As the phrase goes, "The devil is in the detail" but with Rob Andrew's previous experience from Rugby, he knows where the pitfalls are, and I am sure come March when the ECB offer their "far greater detail", counties like Sussex will agree and kowtow to the promised £1.3m per year or £6.5m over 5 years to each county + the alleged £300,000 staging fee for each match a TMG hosts.
I believe this £6.5m will place Sussex in a very strong position over their rivals. The club has no debt, the ground is already developed, although as May points out, the importance of salary caps becomes ever more crucial, otherwise this lottery win may end up in the players and agents pockets.
The only query is over Surrey who don't require the money and are angry after building up an already highly successful and money- spinning T20 Blast. But does the ECB care? There is already 'Lord's' and now the 'Olympic Stadium' as grounds for the CBT to be hosted in London.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2017 11:35:43 GMT
Cricket South Africa putting eight franchises out to tender for their new IPL/Big Bash style tournament - and the competition will launch this October. That's great for me, as I'll be able to take it in during our annual November holiday in SA . But it just adds to the utter frustration that English cricket is being asked to wait another THREE YEARS before we cach up with the rest of the world... www.espncricinfo.com/southafrica/content/story/1080830.html
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Post by gmdf on Feb 4, 2017 11:41:55 GMT
Cricket South Africa putting eight franchises out to tender for their new IPL/Big Bash style tournament - and the competition will launch this October. That's great for me, as I'll be able to take it in during our annual November holiday in SA . But it just adds to the utter frustration that English cricket is being asked to wait another THREE YEARS before we cach up with the rest of the world... www.espncricinfo.com/southafrica/content/story/1080830.htmlI have to say the more 'leagues' that are created all round the world, with some (perhaps quite a few) of the same players featuring, the less the attraction will be everywhere. Are we in danger of killing the goose that has, it seems, laid the golden egg?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2017 18:00:58 GMT
Well I think eight of the ten Test playing nations now have such high-profile, high-octane, high-quality international tournaments.
The only exceptions are Zimbabwe - and England, where we have this monstrously cumbersome thing involving 18 teams that starts on blasted freezing evenings in May in front of 2-3,000 people,and then lumbers along for what seems like months on end until everyone has lost the will to live.
Eventually you get a final at Edgbaston sometime in August, by which time everyone has forgotten how the teams even got there...
England invented T20 but after mucking around with Stanford, picking a senseless fight with Modi over the IPL and generally pissing about in every conceivable way, now finds itself at the back of the queue with Mugabe's basket-case of a country.
How the hell did that happen?
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Post by philh on Feb 5, 2017 15:09:08 GMT
Cricket South Africa putting eight franchises out to tender for their new IPL/Big Bash style tournament - and the competition will launch this October. That's great for me, as I'll be able to take it in during our annual November holiday in SA . But it just adds to the utter frustration that English cricket is being asked to wait another THREE YEARS before we cach up with the rest of the world... www.espncricinfo.com/southafrica/content/story/1080830.htmlI have to say the more 'leagues' that are created all round the world, with some (perhaps quite a few) of the same players featuring, the less the attraction will be everywhere. Are we in danger of killing the goose that has, it seems, laid the golden egg? Interesting point. And, will the medium term effect mean that: 1) There will be year round T20 tournaments 2) Players will either play T20 or 3/4/5 day cricket Will this lead to insufficient crowds to watch 3/4/5 cricket and it will be played by amateurs with a few semi-professionals? Hopefully, 3/4/5 day cricket will last for my lifetime.
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A.S.
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Post by A.S. on Feb 5, 2017 16:16:33 GMT
I have to say the more 'leagues' that are created all round the world, with some (perhaps quite a few) of the same players featuring, the less the attraction will be everywhere. Are we in danger of killing the goose that has, it seems, laid the golden egg? Interesting point. And, will the medium term effect mean that: 1) There will be year round T20 tournaments 2) Players will either play T20 or 3/4/5 day cricket Will this lead to insufficient crowds to watch 3/4/5 cricket and it will be played by amateurs with a few semi-professionals? Hopefully, 3/4/5 day cricket will last for my lifetime. Like all cricket followers, I enjoy watching the highest quality cricket to be had. But over the 18 summers I've been a regular watcher of four day matches and member of Kent, I have come to realize that I equally enjoy 3 or 4 day matches between any two competitive sides (maybe that's what comes of being in Div 2 of late). If they are relatively balanced, someone from each side will put in an entertaining batting or bowling performance, in just the same way as might happen in an Ashes match. For that reason, I am content to (and do) watch county second eleven matches and, if the domination of T20 kills the county championship, so be it. If spared till it happens, I will chuck in my membership and spend my dotage watching county seconds matches, (and save a few bob in the process).
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Post by Deleted on Feb 5, 2017 17:06:53 GMT
Well I think eight of the ten Test playing nations now have such high-profile, high-octane, high-quality international tournaments. The only exceptions are Zimbabwe - and England, where we have this monstrously cumbersome thing involving 18 teams that starts on blasted freezing evenings in May in front of 2-3,000 people,and then lumbers along for what seems like months on end until everyone has lost the will to live. Eventually you get a final at Edgbaston sometime in August, by which time everyone has forgotten how the teams even got there... England invented T20 but after mucking around with Stanford, picking a senseless fight with Modi over the IPL and generally pissing about in every conceivable way, now finds itself at the back of the queue with Mugabe's basket-case of a country. How the hell did that happen? BM the English version you describe does not apply this year, with the tournament now played in a block from July 8, with a break in Aug for one CC game. Much more sensible format in my opinion. Also these dates would not clash with bi annual global football tournaments, and cover the summer school holidays. Much more sensible in my opinion, and it will be interesting to see the impact.
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