‘Itna bhi nahi badla jitna tu bol raha hai’ – Fans react to Pat Cummins statement on IPL changing international cricket

Considering the million-dollar deals granted by the franchises worldwide, Australian skipper Pat Cummins has acknowledged how the Indian Premier League (IPL) now has a greater influence on the players than international cricket. He does think that athletes shouldn’t be held responsible for accepting the hefty contracts. 

Trent Boult, the bowling prodigy from New Zealand, released his central contract in August of last year so that he could pursue franchise chances. A couple of months later, Martin Guptill, a 36-year-old fellow countryman and opener, took a similar path to look into franchise options. 

Cummins noted that the IPL’s stronghold on international cricket altered a decade ago and anticipates that it will continue to alter in the future. He spoke to Sydney Morning Herald about this and said, “It’s been coming for a while, but I think it is here now. International cricket doesn’t have a monopoly on players’ time like it did in the past. The IPL changed that a decade ago, but there’s just going to be more and more content that creeps in, so I think we’ve got to be more proactive about that. When you’re talking about some of the opportunities that may be provided through these franchises, I don’t think you can blame the players that might take the option.”

The 29-year-old went on to say that the responsibility is up to the professionals right now to serve as role models for the next generation of Australian players. He further stated that “We have to keep making playing for Australia as special as we can, keeping a high performance to get every single player wanting to play for Australia as much as we can. That’s going to be the challenge. I think it’s upon us now and we’ve got to start thinking about that quite deeply. I think fast forward a few years time, international calendar might look a little bit different.”

The World Test Championship (WTC) final, which will begin on June 7 at The Oval, is currently being prepared for by Cummins. In order to make history as the first Australian skipper to take home the World Test Championship, Pat Cummins will have to overcome a formidable India team that is also vying for the trophy.

Fans react to Pat Cummins’s statement on IPL changing international cricket: –