Former skipper Sudhir Naik gives just-announced Mumbai Cricket League the thumbs down
Former skipper Sudhir Naik gives just-announced Mumbai Cricket League the thumbs down
The Mumbai Cricket Association becomes the third state body to be lured by Twenty20 cricket after Maharashtra and Karnataka. The Sharad Pawar-led association has decided to organise an eight-team Mumbai Premier League next April a la Indian Premier League.
Mumbai cricket expert Sudhir Naik said that the MCA could well be following the vision of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, who want to promote lucrative Twenty20 leagues in the country. Naik, a former India and Mumbai captain however, warned that while T20 cricket would bring in money, it would hamper the development of young cricketers.
Cash cow"Everybody wants to promote Twenty20 cricket especially the BCCI, because they feel they can earn a lot of money from it," Naik told MiD DAY yesterday. The MCL is based on the IPL concept which claims that it is a platform for unearthing and grooming young talent. Naik disagreed: "On the contrary, the standard of cricket will deteriorate. Twenty20 is mainly entertainment for the public. It breeds wrong batting techniques. The batsmen and bowlers develop the habit of playing only for a few overs no long innings and no long spells.
"The batsman has the license to indulge in big-hitting from the first ball. You can play a cross-batted shot off the first ball and get out, yet no one will say you got out playing a bad shot. It takes away the responsibility aspect in cricket," said Naik.
Naik is associated with National Cricket Club that has nurtured the likes of Wasim Jaffer and Zaheer Khan. "Cricketers are increasingly focusing only on playing Twenty20," revealed Naik.
"Some players are not interested in playing Ranji Trophy. Administrators and players want to make fast money. Twenty20 will kill cricket," he declared.
