By Frank Dalleres
The Hundred isn’t going away, whatever diehard cricket traditionalists might wish. It’s been cemented into the English calendar until at least 2028 by a television deal finalised just before the arrival of the England and Wales Cricket Board’s new chair.
Richard Thompson, erstwhile arch-critic of the controversial competition, now finds his room for manoeuvre severely cramped. No surprise, then, that he has adopted a pragmatically softer stance. But he must surely be searching for a solution that can reunite the game.
One journalist recently likened this summer’s edition of The Hundred to a band’s difficult second album. Attendances were up, but TV audiences down. The finals were low scoring affairs on a leaden Lord’s wicket. Few matches went right down to the wire.
One men’s franchise, Welsh Fire, failed to register a win (Fire women won just one of six). All of which are fixable – well, maybe not the tightness of matches – but none would represent the fix.
Thompson has gently fanned the flames of speculation that in time private money will be sought to invest in the Hundred. Its eight franchise teams are centrally owned by the ECB and therefore tidily set up for sale.
The governing body’s eyes will be set on the riches that have poured into the Indian Premier League. Who, though, should benefit from any incoming dollars? Make it the first class counties and – potentially – you have the fix.
For too long, the ECB has acted as though it is aloof above the counties. It has treated them more like serfs than members, buying off their initial opposition to the Hundred with annual payments of £1.3m each – small beer in the overall financial context but vital sums for the hard-pressed recipients.
With one of their own as chair, now surely is the time for a reset in this relationship. What better way than for the value in the eight franchises in the Hundred to be handed over to the counties?
The ECB could congratulate itself on creating something of demonstrable worth, and then ceding control and benefit to its members – those same members who nurture the talent that fills England’s international teams.
How to make it happen? My opening over would comprise shares in each franchise being given to pairs or trios of counties (eight into 18 not going exactly). The ECB could retain a share in teams for the benefit of its other members and the grassroots game.
Say, a third per county and a third for the ECB in the six teams with two county owners; equal thirds for the two teams with three county owners.
The net effect would be a 75 per cent stake in the competition across the counties with the remaining 25 per cent retained by the ECB.
The ECB should then move swiftly to organise an auction of minority stakes in the franchises, with the carrot that controlling interests could be made available (at the behest of the counties) at a predetermined point in the future.
Throughout, there should be a directive that each squad includes a minimum number of players from each of its owner counties, and that these counties retain a deciding voice in key cricketing decisions irrespective of their shareholdings.
Of course, this requires counties to collaborate. Which will ruffle many of the diehards as much as the existence of the Hundred itself. Kent together with Surrey. Northants and Warwickshire. Yorkshire with Durham.
If the Hundred isn’t going away though, better surely to park tribalism, to cooperate and grasp a transformative financial opportunity. (I’m not, though, advocating a joint team ownership by Yorkshire and Lancashire!)
Right away I can imagine dark mutterings within the ECB saying that the counties couldn’t be trusted with such an inheritance. That player salaries would simply inflate; windfall riches squandered.
But this can be addressed with regulations to govern the use of the proceeds of an auction. And a combination of centralised commercial sales and required quality standards would help maintain, and grow, the value of the competition to the benefit of all.
Trust is in short supply in English cricket. Time to rebuild it, starting with the sport’s most divisive issue. To solve the problem by multiplying, not dividing.
Use your imagination
At one point in the lengthy spells of sunshine on the opening washed-out day of the final England v South Africa Test match, with the umpires doing their best Dickie Bird impressions in refusing to let the players leave their dressing rooms, this message flashed up on the digiboards surrounding the ground: “Please keep an eye on play to avoid being hit by the ball.”
What play?! Kick a despondent spectator in the box, why don’t you?
The sound of silence
The football authorities moved early to cancel all matches over the weekend on the announcement of the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Too early.
No Saturday morning footy for the under-sevens? No trust in spectators to behave with dignity? The rush to a decision was a misstep and, I’d say, reflects a misunderstanding of the role of governing bodies. In such an extraordinary time it should be to reflect the wishes of their members, not try to dictate them.
Others got it bang on. Maybe because I’d once met the Queen at a reception for the London Marathon at Windsor Castle, a minute’s silence before the Mole Valley Parkrun was a surprisingly touching moment for me. As clearly was the one that preceded the Test at the Oval on Saturday for those 27,000 or so in the ground.
Football should take time to ask what it learned about itself in deciding to cancel – if its leaders can find spare time while trying to sort out the ensuing fixture congestion.
Cardiff calling
We are going ahead with the King Power Wheelchair Rugby Quad Nations in Cardiff this weekend. With Canada, France and Germany in town, this is the last chance for our Great Britain team to fine-tune ahead of the World Championships in Denmark next month.
Come along if you fancy a dose of high impact sport, or stream the games on YouTube. Details here: Quad Nations.
All in an evening’s work
To Adams Park to see Wycombe Wanderers host Accrington Stanley on Tuesday. A fascinating manager watch, Stanley’s John Coleman pacing a tight triangle – from sitting morosely on a coolbox, to leaning against the dugout, to bellowing repeatedly in the ear of fourth official Daniel Bonneywell in a game remarkably devoid of officiating controversy.
For Coleman a four-hour coach trip north after a 1-0 defeat; for Bonneywell a modest match fee hard earned. Both actors integral to the performance art that is professional football.
Ed Warner is chair of GB Wheelchair Rugby and writes at sportinc.substack.com
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