“I Don't Think That There Is Just One Answer” – Eoin Morgan When Asked What He Would Do About Cricket's Scheduling Problem

England National Cricket Team 2019 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup-winning captain Eoin Morgan has asserted that there is not “just one answer” to the scheduling problem in the game of cricket.

On Sunday, November 13, Jos Buttler-led England defeated Babar Azam-led Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) to win the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 championship.

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Just a few days after the conclusion of the World Cup, the three-match ODI series between the Three Lions and Australia commenced. Australia won the matches that were played on November 17 and 19 to seal the series and the last game is set to be played on November 22. Speaking ahead of the ODI series, star all-rounder Moeen Ali told reporters that the scheduling of the series is “horrible”.

Eoin Morgan was asked by The Cricketer what he would do about the scheduling problem in cricket as ‘world controller of cricket’. He responded (as quoted by The Cricketer):

“I don’t think that there is just one answer. If you compromise one country’s fixtures it opens opportunities for someone else to fill it with more.

“We played some warm-up games in India a few years ago, and some of their senior players were appearing. Their skipper said that they wanted to play 16. We always wanted to play 11 to make it more competitive, though, so we asked him ‘Why?’

“He said, ‘If we say we are playing 11 they will create a series, a pre-series, ahead of the official matches, with sponsorship, everything, and there’s a bit of a hoo-ha. It then becomes extra fixtures on the list, and players feel obliged to play in it’.”

Eoin Morgan said that the problem of a jam-packed schedule has been there for quite a while and mentioned that England played a Test match against Ireland at Lord’s less than a week after winning the World Cup in 2019.

“In 2019 less than a week after we (England) won the (50-over) World Cup, players were playing in a Test match at Lord’s against Ireland. We’ve had problems with this jam-packed schedule for a while, and I don’t have an answer at the moment.”

“I Think So” – Eoin Morgan When Asked Whether Players Will Choose Two Out Of Three Formats In Future

Eoin Morgan, who recently announced his retirement, was asked whether he expects the players to choose two out of three formats as Ben Stokes. Notably, Stokes announced his retirement from ODIs to focus on Tests and T20Is. Morgan replied:

“I think so… and maybe even less. Which format do you pick? Is it determined by the board or the player?

“Ben being the experienced guy that he is had the courage to decide, but young players won’t have that. Of course we want Ben to play in the World Cup, everyone wants to see that, but humans can’t play every day. Something has to give.”

Eoin Morgan further stated that there is a possibility that, in future, cricket will follow the route of football and will be dominated by franchise leagues.

“I don’t think what our fans want at home is the same as what people want away from home This is sport, entertainment, you give people what they want. Countries who rarely play Test cricket want more white-ball games.

“You only get the right answer if you ask the right question. The right question is, ‘Where will the game be in 10 years?’ England will play Test cricket, and we are lucky that people still enjoy playing for their country and take pride in that… but if I’m honest I think that there is a danger that cricket will follow football and go down the club/Champions League route.

“It is why West Indies are where they are at the moment. It’s a consequence of players being allowed to choose franchise leagues over their countries. Now there is a rebuilding process because they have lost so many players.”

Also Read: AUS vs ENG: They’re Looking To Build Some New Leaders, Some Younger Leaders, I’m Pretty Chilled, I’ll Just Do My Thing – Steve Smith