IPL made them rich: Geoffrey Boycott launches a 'firestorm' against ‘moderate to average’ England Test players

Former batsman Geoffrey Boycott has slammed England for their poor performance in recent times, especially in Tests. His comments have come just days after England failed to defend their T20 World Cup title.

The Jos Buttler-led side bowed out of the competition at the semifinal stage after suffering a crushing 68-run loss at the hands of eventual winners India. They managed to beat just one Test-playing nation in the tournament while also suffering defeats against the likes of Australia and South Africa.

England had failed to do well in last year's ODI World Cup as well. They were the defending champions in that tournament as well but could not go past the league stage. They eventually finished the 10-team competition at the 7th spot with just 3 wins and 9 defeats.

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Earlier this year, England also suffered a humiliating 4-1 loss in the Test series in India. While they started the series with a fine win in Hyderabad, they failed to sustain the winning momentum and were very much outplayed in the following four games.

With things not going well for England, Geoffrey Boycott did not mince his words as he slammed the team for the poor performances. He also said that 'few of our moderate to average Test players' have become rich only because of the IPL.

"All we have had over the last few months is the Twenty20 World Cup in the Caribbean, where England performed poorly, the Indian Premier League, which helped a few of our moderate to average Test players get rich," Geoffrey Boycott wrote in his column for The Telegraph.

"Before that, a miserable 4-1 Test series loss in India where England started well, but in the end were hammered," he added.

Test match cricket is not an exhibition: Geoffrey Boycott

Writing further, Geoffrey Boycott recalled the tour of India where England players failed to walk the talk. The England great recalled how England's penchant for playing attacking cricket caused their downfall in India. He also took a shot at the England players for not giving priority to results, saying that they should join a circus if they think results don’t matter.

"In India last winter, ego and hubris got the better of some of our players. They came out with comments about being entertainers and how it was important to score quickly and thrill the crowds. All that is laudable but they should never lose sight that there is a winner and a loser and losing isn’t much fun," Boycott wrote.

"Test match cricket is not an exhibition. If our players start to think that results don’t matter then they might as well join a circus or go around the world like the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team doing tricks, laughing and joking, and not bothering who wins so long as everyone has a fun time," he added.

England have not won a Test series since December 2022. Last year, they drew the away series in New Zealand before drawing the Ashes against Australia at home. It was followed by the heavy defeat in India and they are currently playing against West Indies in a three-match Test series.