Cricket Needs a Transfer Market
It was interesting to see the flurry of transfer activity in Europe on deadline day yesterday - almost all involving young players, who are a commodity due to the dynamics of the transfer market.
Contrast this with cricket, where declining veterans still command big salaries & young players lack opportunity.
There is so much young talent out there in cricket who are denied opportunities by the same globe-trotting veterans playing in all the various T20 leagues worldwide, despite declining output and suboptimal preparation.
Not just this, but in the recent BBL group stages, three teams combined to give just 10 appearances to players aged 23 or below (age at 20/1/25).
It is easy to see where this is going for some countries in cricket who have shown little in the way of a succession plan, ensuing in an inevitable period of rebuilding when the veterans can go on for no longer & the best young players haven't had the game time to be ready to take their places.
The solution for cricket is for there to be a transfer market - arguably one should already be in place where IPL teams pay to loan their overseas players in for the tournament - this would immediately create better opportunities for young talent because (as is the case in football) they'll be treated as financial assets rather than squad fillers.
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