Apart from his contributions to Zimbabwe cricket, Heath Streak's awareness of the environment he operates in is special. Here he speaks with Rahul Bhatia about private leagues and the motivation for playing in one.
How is playing in this league different from anything you've done before?
Obvoiusly, for one thing, this is Twenty20 cricket. It's very exciting, you know. For the last two years I've been playing for Warwickshire, but I've really enjoyed Twenty20 cricket. The atmosphere, the crowds, it's all very enjoyable.
It's not like playing for your country, nor is it records you're playing for. So what exactly motivates a cricketer to play here?
At its heart, we enjoy playing cricket at the highest level. Obviously the financial bit is very good in the ICL. It's not just the ICL, but the IPL as well. As a result cricketers are being paid much better.
Also, it's nice to play in a tournament where I can impart some of the experiences I've gained in my time to the talented and young Indian players - the very people who wouldn't have had many opportunities to play along international players.
So hopefully we can fast-track them, and it'll be about the satisfaction of seeing those guys develop into world class players.
You mentioned imparting knowledge. From last year the ICL was seen primarily as the unofficial league. Does that somehow bring a feeling of community.
Look, it definitely does, and I know there's definitely a desire to make a success of the ICL. Certainly from what I've seen in the first tournament and then this tournament, the players are not holding back. Everybody's keen, the money is good, so there's a very big incentive for the local Indian players.
Besides the financial rewards, what effects do you see leagues like the ICL and IPL having on the general cricketing landscape?
Well, I think you'll find that it will streamline cricket a bit more, like football has. Let's be honest. India is the financial epicenter of international cricket. International players and international fixtures will probably have to revolve more around the IPL and ICL.
Hopefully the two can come together at some stage.
But that's in the future. Look at your soccer players. They play for clubs and then play for internationals when asked.
Look, ultimately people want to watch good high-class cricket, and you'll find that this is what the ICL and IPL will provide. You'll watch the world's big players playing day in and day out.
Like you said about soccer, nearly every major sport has its primary competitions between clubs. Only cricket sticks to country. Is this development a step forward?
I certainly don't want to see the international side of things go out the window. They need to find a balance. I think there was too much international cricket to be played. If that is reined in and you get higher quality matches, and then in between you get these super league type matches, the balance would be good.
Do you think leagues like this can spread the game?
I hope so. If you look at the ICL and see the way they're going about things, they're developing facilities, big academies. It's not just that they're pumping money into players. Hopefully some of these guys will break into the national team one day.
Do private leagues benefit standout players in smaller teams, or teams that don't compete well on the whole?
I think it'll be difficult for that to happen. You'll probably find that top players will be offered assignments, but for players from fringe countries. Ultimately countries like those need to develop from a grassroots level, and I think bodies like the ICC have failed to spend enough money to benefit countries and help players become better. The onus is on them to get these countries to the highest level.
Rahul Bhatia, a former correspondent with Cricinfo, is currently on sabbatical to work on a book on his favorite subject -- cricket. Rahul will file regular reports/features/interviews for Rediff during the ICL tournament. More of him here. (http://grch.wordpress.com/)
