Australia launched their vision for a bigger slice of cricket’s Twenty20 pie on Friday, unveiling plans for a southern hemisphere league involving franchises from South Africa and New Zealand.
Cricket Australia (CA) spokesman Peter Young said the tournament was being tentatively aimed for October 2011 with city-based franchises grouped into eastern and western conferences.
“It’s likely the franchise owners will be from anywhere in the world. They won’t necessarily just be from South Africa, Australia and New Zealand,” Young said.
“It’s likely the project team will recommend city-based, franchise-owned teams but we don’t yet have a sense of how many.
“It will probably be played in an October timeslot with a number of international stars as well as interstate stars.
“This thing will have an audience in the billions.”
Young said potential franchise owners from Asia would have massive potential for selling their brand through television audiences in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the sub-continent, with international stars such as India’s Sachin Tendulkar likely to be offered contracts.
Young said the city-based franchise idea had been under discussion by CA for 18 months and the success of this year’s inaugural Indian Premier League (IPL) T20 gives Australia the opportunity to watch and learn.
“The fact that they have gone first gives us an opportunity to see it. It’s like a live test to see how it works,” Young said.
Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) chief Paul Marsh said the players backed the concept but were keen for Ricky Ponting’s Australian squad members to be involved.
“If they see (Australia’s) international players as critical to the success of this event then reducing the amount of international cricket is what they’ll have to do,” Marsh told AAP.
Young said CA was also “hopeful” that Ricky Ponting’s Australian squad would be available.
“The greatest challenge for this event and the IPL is to put together a schedule that can fit them in but not have them compete with international cricket,” Marsh said.
“If we can create a window for the IPL and for this event and ensure the players still have the necessary time for leave and to spend time with their families …
“With the IPL, the massive crowds and television audiences, there’s no doubt that Twenty20 is bringing new people to cricket.
“But if we start putting players in a position where they have to choose between big-money Twenty20 events and international cricket, particularly with players from some of the lesser nations, then international cricket will be the loser without any question.
“You have to understand that the IPL payments for six weeks of work, for some of these players it might be eight or nine times what they earn in a whole year for their country.
“That’s why cricket has to protect the game.”
International guest players will be introduced for the BigBash Australian domestic Twenty20 tournament of 2009-10.
Victoria and Western Australia will compete in the inaugural Champions League Twenty20 in December in India against domestic teams from South Africa, England, Pakistan and hosts India.
The new southern hemisphere league could potentially become the feeder competition to the Champions League Twenty20, relegating the BigBash to a lesser role in the Australian domestic season.
Young said the southern hemisphere league would be developed as a financially self-sufficient concept and would not be reliant on approval from the Champions League Twenty20.
