Shortened Australia Tests a sign of cricket coming full circle

A very interesting statement was made by a Cricket Australia spokesman on May 6 when questioned about the now shortened Test series against South Africa, set for this coming October. Australia are touring to return the favour of South Africa, having toured Down Under during December and January, both countries’ most profitable time for cricket. Intriguingly, a tour that was meant to feature three Test matches has now been reduced to two, with those matches being hosted in Cape Town and Johannesburg.

With the CSA looking to make back revenue lost from the two previous tours of Australia, it is revealing that they have decided to axe one of the Tests to ensure there is space for three One Day Internationals and two T20 internationals, formats more popular with the crowds. With the Test matches being nowhere near December and January — with that honour belonging to Sri Lanka this season — CSA has decided to dispense with a Test which would struggle to draw a good crowd over the five days. The crowds of Australia’s previous tours, which have usually being held in February and March — also outside the festive period — have mostly been poor during the week since most fans would’ve returned to work and will only take leave perhaps that coming Easter.

Newlands is a near exception, since it usually comes close to or sells-out over the weekends. But still, with CSA backing Cape Town and Johanneburg as its venues, they must be the ones CSA believe will draw the largest crowds and generate the most interest.

Coming back to that comment by the CA spokesperson, they said of the future shape of the cricket season that “the FTP is not quite resolved yet, and long term there is a view that as we get further into the future it might be possible to play less international cricket. For the time being, what we’ve got is what we’ve got.”

Less international cricket is what pricked up my ears. With the T20 Champions League taking place again this year very near to the conclusion of Australia’s tour, South Africa and Australia — as financial partners in the tournament — each have something at stake after the conclusion of the tour. Many of their top players would be featuring in the Champions League, which wouldn’t be able to generate the same amount of star power if not graced by the best players. The spokesperson did suggest Australia would have preferred three Tests instead of two, but considering the Champions League’s proximity to the tour, both parties won’t be losing out too much. It is probably far more profitable to ensure the success of the start of the Champions League with rested players then it would be with those who have just concluded a tour. Those involved in cricket in South Africa have stated that the Champions League didn’t come into the reckoning when the decision was made to shorten the tour, but it is convenient for everyone involved that the decision was made.

South Africa have stated the coming festive season tour by Sri Lanka, plus a tour to New Zealand afterwards, which would end the Proteas’ international season in March or later, was the primary motivator for the decision. Still, with the rise of the IPL and now the Champions League, the structure of professional cricket is shifting perhaps at a faster pace than many imagined. Rewind 10 years to 2001 and the epic series between India and Australia was the most important event of the year. Now, the IPL and its bastard child the Champions League seem to be where the money is going, with T20 having gobbled up an astonishing amount of the game’s market in such a short amount of time.

The future of international cricket appears to be at a watershed moment, since right now the balance of power between the national boards, the player associations, along with the business muscle behind cricket’s most profitable events appears to be constrained in a very melding of wills and ambitions. But, with this alliance being brittle and built on the principle of economic reciprocity in the most part, a slight change might be enough to make this tensioned knot of cricket’s most influential relationships implode.

Soccer is already dominated by the club game, with international football — while still relevant, now a nicety. Rugby union is heading in that direction as well, with European clubs now being able to offer larger contracts then the national unions in Australia and New Zealand, let alone South Africa. The current Super 15 is the first stepping stone, in combination with the Heineken Cup, of rugby’s first global season. Specific windows have now been left open for international rugby, which was never the case before in the main, since international rugby was the ultimate bread winner for the national unions. Now, Saru has multiple streams of revenue.

Cricket might not be a big enough sport to produce more tournaments of international standard. T20 does sort of solve this problem in that while it is still a game where those with the greatest skills will generally rise to the top, it is also a format which decreases the gap between the best and the rest. Perhaps we will see international leagues spring up where The Netherlands, Ireland (if they haven’t already formed a couple of their own franchises given their current rise) and Zimbabwe (how they are still a full member of the ICC I don’t know) would send their national teams to compete against franchise sides from the stronger nations.

It certainly does appear outlandish at first thought, but then again, anything is possible as long as money makes the world go round.