Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin stated on Thursday that the European T20 Premier League (ETPL) is an essential complement to the current array of franchise-based tournaments since, unlike ODIs, the format is here to stay.
Ashwin supports ETPL as a platform for T20’s global expansion. When cricket returns to the Olympics in 2028, the ETPL will serve as a catalyst for the sport’s globalization, according to India’s second-highest wicket-taker in Test cricket.
“Look, I think there’s an Olympics that’s going to happen in a couple of years. And if cricket as a game is pretty serious about making it a global affair, the teams in this league will play a very crucial part in enabling that,” PTI quoted Ashwin as saying.
Ashwin believes that the T20 format is the only option to globalize the game.
“Our job will be purely on T20 cricket and how it can get better. And if the game has to become global and it has to become an Olympic sport, the shorter the game, the more viable it is.
“And that’s how it’s going to become much bigger. And you will see a better sample size of players, which is also very critical for several of these leagues which run through the year. T20 as a sport is here to stay. I’m not too sure about ODI cricket,” said Ashwin.
The idea of his team and the league helping cricket to grow in Ireland excites Ashwin as well.
“So, as far as I’m concerned, this is a really, really exciting prospect where we not only believe that we can pick a team and do well in this tournament and also make it a really good place for these players to come in and get better and also have a lasting impact on the tournament.”
“We owe it to the Dublin franchise and also Irish cricket in many ways, try and enable them, try and probably provide them with the right amount of exposure and opportunities,” said the legendary off-spinner.
For Ashwin, the league is more about giving the players from Scotland, Ireland, and the Netherlands a chance to display their skills in a top-notch setting.
“We want to make it about them. And that’s something that we were very clear the first day Rahul (Dravid as team owner) and I spoke about it. And we will stay very true to that particular formula. And we will put up a culture where cricket is played in a fashion that everyone wants to grow at least by one person every single day.”
Ashwin also discussed how conditions may balance out matches, as demonstrated by the recent series in which Ireland defeated India 0-2, and how adaptation is essential to any sport.
“You should be able to adapt. The name of the game is adaptation, which is why what happened recently between India and Ireland in that T20 series is a classic example of how conditions can eliminate a lot of aspects of the game that have been developed as a root cause of T20 as a sport.”
While the goal is to develop the undiscovered talent in the European zone, Amsterdam Flames co-owner Steve Waugh acknowledged that getting the present England T20 stars to participate in the ETPL in the upcoming years will significantly strengthen the event.
“Well, it wasn’t my choice for that (top English players not being part). And yeah, it’d be nice to have English players there, perhaps sometime in the future,” said Waugh.
“But we’re looking at developing players in Europe that haven’t had the big opportunities in the past. They really haven’t been able to showcase their skills. And this is what this tournament’s about.
“It’d be good to have England have more of a presence in the league. Hopefully, once it’s established, obviously, it’s starting in about eight weeks’ time, everybody will see how great this competition is going to be, the quality, the players, the standard,” Waugh added.
