'Performance in IPL will be important for T20 World Cup selection'

Veteran coach Tom Moody on Thursday said the players' performance in highly-competitive leagues like IPL and ILT20 will have an added heft this time because of the impact it can have on the team selection ahead of the T20 World Cup.

This edition of the marquee ICC event is scheduled to be held jointly in the West Indies and the USA in June and most of the teams, including India, have already finished their T20I assignments.

“The IPL (set to be played between March-May), along with any other T20 tournament, like the ILT20, is important for any player to be performing because every home team is looking at the performances of all their players in these tournaments because of the high-quality cricket in these (leagues),” Moody said during a virtual media interaction facilitated by the Desert Vipers team of the ILT20.

Moody then described how these outings could help players to secure a berth in the World Cup-bound squads.

“If you are scoring runs, taking wickets and showing consistency, it only puts you in a good position as an individual when it comes to those final tough decisions around the selection table.

“It allows you to continue with that sort of confidence, going into an important (T20) World Cup,” Moody added.

Even India head coach Rahul Dravid had expressed a similar opinion recently.

"We might not get many opportunities to play together, so we will have to work around that.

"We will obviously have the IPL, and you know, everyone will be watching closely to see how some of those guys play and what are the slots we need to fill in the team," Dravid had said after India's three-match home T20I series against Afghanistan last month.

However, Moody was not unmindful of the challenge a new destination like USA can offer to the teams, who otherwise might be familiar with conditions in the West Indies.

“Many people have played in the Caribbean but what would be presented in the US will be one of many different things.”

The former Australian all-rounder said the teams and players will have to adapt quickly to a non-regular cricketing venue like the US.

“Talking about world-class players, they have played in all sorts of conditions and situations. I believe the top players and teams would adapt pretty quickly, whether it's chasing down a total over 200 or even low-scoring ones,” he reckoned.

‘Protect Test cricket'

As the discussion veered towards the future of Test cricket in a world of mushrooming T20 leagues, Moody said the International Cricket Council (ICC) should work with various boards to save the traditional format of the game.

“It's a balance of both. These leagues are cropping up around the world for a reason, as there is an appetite for T20 cricket,” he said.

“But the ICC and the boards need to be mindful of keeping that delicate balance right, and we need to protect Test cricket.”

Moody was being merely realistic when he said the number of Test matches will see a reduction in the future.

“The reality is we are not going to be playing as much Test cricket as we have done historically. Also, not every nation would be playing so much volume of Test cricket because of the financial strain it puts on the cricketing boards.”

The experienced coach, however, said it would be tough for all the T20 leagues to survive for long because of the need for consistent financial support.

Moody hoped that would bring some foothold for Test cricket.

"Over time, we will see the established leagues, who have got a good infrastructure and financial backing and good cricketing investors, will last and flourish, while the other ones will slowly fall away, which will create some natural gaps (for Test cricket),” he noted.

The Test cricket's existential battle reminded Moody of the time when World Series Cricket (WSC) of Kerry Packer shook the foundation of the sport in the 70s.

“What's happened historically with the game is that it is changing, and we need to embrace it. There was a generation in the 70s when we were having this conversation when Kerry Packer brought the World Series Cricket,” Moody reminisced.

Packer's ‘Pyjama Cricket' brought in coloured clothing, 40-over-format and extra money into the game, which attracted several top stars of that era from the West Indies and Australia.

Though the WSC was only played between 1977 and 1979, it transformed the landscape of cricket forever, helping people to realise the potential of the sport.

“Playing cricket under lights and coloured clothing was a laughable idea (during WSC). But look, where it's taken us now,” Moody signed off.