India tour of England Aug-Sept 2021

[Ed Smith]

Fair enough

Pretty much sums up how I feel

 

[SaiSrini]

Ah! The famous "IPL bashing" has started! Accept it or not, franchise leagues are the future of the sport. They're a priority and they will be a bigger priority as years go by. Right now franchise leagues are in an era where the current fan base is still well connected to test cricket and they consider franchise leagues as 'silly entertainment'. But as this fan base moves into the sunset, the revolving fanbase will further and further enjoy franchise leagues more.

Coming to the cancellation, that clip of Atherton and Nasser explaining it was pretty well done, I should say! They do accept that the IPL happening in less than 2 weeks plays a huge role in the decision making of whether this test should continue or not. Remember BCCI did not want this test in the first place and did negotiate with ECB on cancelling this test so that there is a bigger gap and players from both sides can move to the IPL bio bubble. ECB didn't accept it then, but now nature has found a way to let things happen on its own accord. I feel sad for all those fans who are going to miss a riveting end to this test series. But I am happy that they've taken a sensible decision and are moving on.

 

[Bigby Wolf]

Like we all respected Ben Stokes decision to not play this series due to mental health concern, we should have some respect for the Indian team too. The players and the family have been part of bubble after bubble. Australia Series, IPL, England Series, WTC, England Series again.. will be part of IPL, WC, NZ series next all within 10 days between them. I am proud of my team that they never complain how much the tweaking bloody money makers use them.

This series was absolutely thriller, England were a fantastic host. Lets not ruin this great series by blaming ECB or BCCI. The only thing I am sad about is the way this was handled. I feel bad for Manchester public, the ground staff who would have sweated and toiled hard to make this happen.

On a bright note for ECB fans, Ben Stokes and perhaps even Archer might be in the XI next year when we return. So the final test would be a thriller. Great series, had fun chatting about it here. Onto the next!

And yeah we won.

Spoiler: What? Who?

See the polls, the last option to be precise.

 

[wasteyouryouth]

Spoiler: The biggest winner of all this

 

[NILAYSHAH60]

Spoiler: The biggest winner of all this

Was kinda expecting this when I saw that spoiler.

 

[Yash.]

I'm seeing English People on the internet blaming BCCI for putting IPL over the test matches, when ECB themselves put the Hundred over the Test Matches in the first place. Double Standards at their finest

 

[wasteyouryouth]

 

[chiefdave]

I'm seeing English People on the internet blaming BCCI for putting IPL over the test matches, when ECB themselves put the Hundred over the Test Matches in the first place. Double Standards at their finest

Really? England played test matches during The Hundred hence the international players being missing from many of The Hundred games.

Moeen Ali was the face and captain of Birmingham Phoenix, they even had a mural of him painted in Birmingham. Didn't stop the ECB calling him up to the test team when needed and missing the last 2, vital, group games.

 

[chiefdave]

I don't have much sympathy with the ECB when it comes to a lot of things but they've been totally screwed over here by the BCCI. They bent over backwards to accommodate the IPL.

They offered to stage games in England, allowed England players to miss the tour of Pakistan to play IPL and created a bubble to bubble transfer to allow players and media involved in the test series to get the IPL without requiring quarantine - of course that required certain criteria being met and I'm sure players and staff attending a book launch wasn't part of the criteria.

And just when you thought it couldn't get any worse there's officials putting the blame onto players mental health. The same players who are already arriving in the UAE happy to go into another bubble.

 

[Ed Smith]

And the games go on...

 

[CerealKiller]

The cancellation serves the ECB right for prioritising IPL over the Pakistan tour
kidding

 

[wasteyouryouth]

And the games go on...

View attachment 255279

Not that surprising. All will probably be required for World T20, Ashes. That'd basically be bubbling, quarantining from now until mid January.

Is this Baristow guy any good at test cricket?

 

[Ed Smith]

Not that surprising. All will probably be required for World T20, Ashes. That'd basically be bubbling, quarantining from now until mid January.

Is this Baristow guy any good at test cricket?

Best Test No3 in the world mate

 

[blockerdave]

Even by the standards of an old fart I’m probably extreme - Test Cricket is the only format I watch or have any interest in. I didn’t watch the 2019 World Cup final, couldn’t give a damn England won (that we lost the 2019 Rugby World Cup final still burns me up).

I am genuinely devastated that the best Test Series since January has been ended in this way… I joke, but seriously this series stands out with the 2005 Ashes and the India Australia series earlier in the year as one of the best series I’ve ever seen. Even if they play a 5th test next year, it won’t be the same.

Imagine if we’d had another belter at Old Trafford - if India had won or drew, winning in Australia and England in the same year in an era when nobody wins away: my god, what an achievement, what a team. If England had won, Root had got another century: what a player, what a year. And we’ve lost all that.

 

[SaiSrini]

All this drama is happening because of the pandemic. Had the pandemic not happened, the IPL would've been completed in April-May, the test series would've happened in its entirety and all this drama wouldn't have happened.

Also.... the BCCI requested ECB if they could not have this 5th test so that there is that adequate time for the players to shift to the IPL, that had to be postponed due to COVID cases in India. ECB did not agree to that and wanted the 5th test. So its not as if ECB bowed down at every instance. The T20 WC was smartly positioned in the same country as the second half of IPL and that too right immediately after the IPL, which made it a very lucrative opportunity for the likes of ECB to be forced to send their players to the IPL so that they get a good account of the conditions.

Even in normal times, you gotta pander to the base where most of the money comes from (INDIA). In a pandemic, that gets amplified 100x. The BCCI is so powerful ONLY because world cricket's overwhelming chunk of its audience base is from the Indian market. And the Indian market tunes in / throws its money at you mostly when Indian players are involved. Work on developing your own markets if you want the BCCI's power to lose its hold.

The cancellation serves the ECB right for prioritising IPL over the Pakistan tour

kidding

Nothing will be served to the ECB. They'll get their money back. BCCI will play the one-off test and help get the money back. Maybe they will even send Indian players to "The Hundred" next year to massively boost the Hundred's commercial value. Already there are talks about how we can reciprocate the gesture that England did in 2008 when the terror attacks happened in India, and yet England stayed back and played.

Its time other boards press the squeeze on the BCCI to make them send Indian players to overseas leagues. There is a clear opportunity to be utilized!