The fact that cricketers need to practise and play the format in which they wish and need to excel was unquestioned for the best part of half a century, ever since the first limited overs format was introduced in 1963.
England’s Gillette Cup was a bold experiment which horrified many lovers of traditional cricket, but it was also 65 overs per side, which made for tortuously long days, even for matches that didn’t last the entire 130 overs.
For decades the style of cricket barely changed, with both sides batting and bowling “normally” until the final few overs when there was a bit of shuffling to see who could scramble over the line.
Nonetheless, there was a widespread belief that trying to complete a match in a single day would corrupt the physical skills and mental fortitude required to play the game as it was always intended.
Fast forward 60 years and the same things are debated. Now, however, there is an increasing recognition that the basic tenets of the argument have changed. The assumption that players could not bat for a day if they had spent their recent playing time trying to score at a run-a-ball has been refuted.
There is too much recent evidence of players successfully transitioning between red- and white-ball cricket for the “muscle memory” theory to prevail. And too much money. Now that international players are properly paid, excuses for playing the wrong shot or bowling the wrong line are neither offered nor tolerated. It’s no longer regarded as a “muscle” issue — it’s more an organ issue, the one between the ears.
Former England captain Alistair Cook recently complained that current No 3 batsman Jacob Bethell would be woefully underprepared for the first Test of the summer because he was “sitting on his arse doing nothing at the [Indian Premier League]”.
Kevin Pietersen, the premature end of whose international career was presided over by Cook, snapped back on social media: “Alistair Cook has absolutely NO IDEA about what it’s like to be in the IPL. What it’s like to always be around the best players in the world.” Pietersen urged Bethell to stay put and become “a way better player”, even though he isn’t getting game time with the Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Cook, unsurprisingly, has not responded. He is a man of class — and he doesn’t do social media. He simply believes that cricketers are better prepared to play cricket by… playing cricket, especially if it’s for their country. Pietersen believes that sharing a change room with the likes of Virat Kohli can be as influential as playing first-class cricket in the County Championship.
There is unquestionable evidence that egotistical players with a narcissistic disposition will thrive in the atmosphere of the IPL, whether they are playing or not. There is also evidence that cricketers of a quieter disposition can be intimidated and even “swallowed” by the atmosphere. And nobody can seriously dispute Cook’s assertion that playing the game is better preparation than not playing. Perhaps they are both right.
It is a far simpler equation for South African cricketers. Not only is the IPL cash worth a great deal more in rand than sterling, but whereas Pietersen derides “playing county cricket in Derby in April”, at least 500 people are watching in Derby. More like 5,000 in Nottingham and closer to 10,000 at the Oval. South Africa’s professionals are lucky to play domestic cricket in front of 500 in a whole season. They’d be lucky to get 10,000 in a career.
The IPL may have become a tiresomely long tournament with little more than a passing interest for the majority of South African supporters, but for players it is the epicentre of the game for 10 weeks a year.
If they feel underwhelmed and underappreciated in their own country, their sense of self-worth soars with an invitation to the IPL, with or without actual game time. And as employers around the world know, South Africans abroad are generally hard workers and good value.
Currently, 20 South Africans are in the IPL — more than any other country has ever contributed in the 19 years of the tournament. They are all better cricketers for the experience, and the national team are, too. If only because they feel valued and appreciated. (And well paid.)
South Africans at the IPL: Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Tristan Stubbs, Kagiso Rabada, Connor Esterhuizen, Aiden Markram, Anrich Nortjé, Matthew Breetzke, George Linde, Quinton de Kock, Ryan Rickelton, Corbin Bosch, Marco Jansen, Nandré Burger, Donovan Ferreira, Kwena Maphaka, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Gerald Coetzee, and Heinrich Klaasen.
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