London, Apr 6 (UNI) England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chief David Collier has said the fledgling IPL must conform to the game's tour schedule and doubts whether the country's top stars will be able to fit into the proposed set-up.
''There are issues of scheduling,'' Collier told BBC today.
''The obvious time for the IPL to play is April and May, but that clashes with the start of our international season.'' ''We play New Zealand on May 15 in England, for our players to take part their schedule has to come forward a few weeks to fit into that calendar,'' he added. ''We should also not forget that we go to the West Indies in the spring of next year. The IPL has said that the tours programmes will take precedence, and clearly that will clash with us being in the West Indies.'' ''And for the IPL to play in October and November would be a problem because that clashes with the majority of global events - (such as) the ICC Champions Trophy - are played during that period, so that time is unlikely.'' Collier expressed concerns that the IPL could run at a loss initially.
''Certainly if you look over a five-to-10-year period, we can believe the claims that Indian cricket is worth a billion dollars.
''But there are 10 franchises, and every one has a turnover of about eight million dollars, it is being said in India that those franchises will be making a loss for a number of years.
''Twenty20 is a great opportunity for cricket but it must not dominate the game. Test cricket, one-day cricket, is crucial to the future of the game and has to compliment the game, not take over from the game,'' he added.
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''There are issues of scheduling,'' Collier told BBC today.
''The obvious time for the IPL to play is April and May, but that clashes with the start of our international season.'' ''We play New Zealand on May 15 in England, for our players to take part their schedule has to come forward a few weeks to fit into that calendar,'' he added. ''We should also not forget that we go to the West Indies in the spring of next year. The IPL has said that the tours programmes will take precedence, and clearly that will clash with us being in the West Indies.'' ''And for the IPL to play in October and November would be a problem because that clashes with the majority of global events - (such as) the ICC Champions Trophy - are played during that period, so that time is unlikely.'' Collier expressed concerns that the IPL could run at a loss initially.
''Certainly if you look over a five-to-10-year period, we can believe the claims that Indian cricket is worth a billion dollars.
''But there are 10 franchises, and every one has a turnover of about eight million dollars, it is being said in India that those franchises will be making a loss for a number of years.
''Twenty20 is a great opportunity for cricket but it must not dominate the game. Test cricket, one-day cricket, is crucial to the future of the game and has to compliment the game, not take over from the game,'' he added.
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