Former Australia pace spearhead Mitchell Johnson has slammed Cricket Australia (CA) CEO Todd Greenberg for his recent remarks urging the need to limit Test cricket to a select few nations and that the five-day format bring financial ruin to smaller cricket boards across the globe.
Speaking to the BBC, Greenberg recently stressed that the expansion of the number of Test-playing nations was not a feasible option; rather the impetus must be enforced on marquee five-match series like the Ashes.
“I don’t think everyone in world cricket needs to aspire to play test cricket, and that might be Ok. We’re literally trying to send countries bankrupt if we force them to try to play test cricket. Scarcity in Test cricket is our friend, not our foe,” Greenberg had said.
“We need to make sure we invest in the right spaces to play Test cricket where it means something and has jeopardy. That’s why the Ashes will be as enormous and profitable as it is — because it means something,” he added.
Johnson’s retort
Writing in his column for the West Australian, Johnson slammed Greenberg’s comments as grossly missing the point of expanding the cricketing landscape.
“He’s (Greenberg) not wrong when he says it’s under threat. He’s not wrong when he says we need to think smart.
“But there’s a line in there that stuck with me: “I don’t think everyone in world cricket needs to aspire to play Test cricket, and that might be OK…literally we’re trying to send countries bankrupt if we force them to try to play Test cricket”,” wrote Johnson.
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“Here’s the thing — if that’s the fear, then we’ve already missed the point. The solution to saving Test cricket isn’t to scale it down to three or four rich countries. It’s to lift the rest up. Help them. Grow the game. Back them.
“This is where real leadership starts — not by pulling up the ladder, but by building a stronger base.”
“Because let’s be clear: these nations want to play Test cricket. The players want it. The fans want it. So why are we making it so hard?” Johnson added.
‘Big 3 shouldn’t dominate the schedule’
Johnson also highlighted the need for accountability from the Big Three powers, urging them to not merely blanket the cricket calendar.
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“I don’t have all the answers, that’s not in my pay grade, but I can say from an ex-player’s point of view that we need as many countries playing Test cricket as possible. If it wasn’t for Test cricket and its initial financial support, we don’t see Twenty20 cricket like it is today.
“The big three — India, England and Australia — have the money, the reach, the leverage. So don’t just dominate the schedule — shape it.
“We talk about “meaningful” Test matches. Well, meaning doesn’t come from a marketing department — it comes from what it represents. A Sri Lanka v Pakistan series might not break streaming records, but to the players, the fans and the groundsmen who spend months preparing that pitch — it means everything,” the 2013 Ashes hero pleaded.
