On the eve of the SA20, the commissioner of the league, Graeme Smith, badmouthed the International League T20 (ILT20), the franchise league of the United Arab Emirates, where the former captain and opening batter of South Africa claimed that these sorts of leagues are not good for the game.
The CEO of the ILT20, David White, has slammed the words of the southpaw as he reckoned that the event has been massively benefiting the cricket in the country and will continue to play a vital role every time the major cricket competitions need late support.
“Oh, Mr. Smith, it’s not our policy to speak about other leagues We are the only league in the world that provides a platform for the associate countries to participate at this level. We’ve got players from Nepal, Malaysia, USA, Scotland, Netherlands, Namibia and Italy.” White expressed during a conversation with Cricbuzz, as quoted by the website.
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The third edition of the IlT20 will kick off at the Dubai International Stadium on Saturday (January 11) with the game between the defending champions MI Emirates and Dubai Capitals.
David White discredits Graeme Smith’s claim on ILT20
The most successful captain in the longest format of the game, Smith, highlighted that the league, which needs so many international players to be built upon doesn’t give an investment back into the local zone of the country. He advised that the head of this franchise event would be needed to explore this challenge and manage it going forward.
The former CEO of New Zealand Cricket countered the criticism and explained how the earned money from the league goes back to the development of the game.
“Listen, he’s entitled to his comments, but I just think that his comments have been made without doing any investigation, maybe he should have taken the time to look at what we’re looking to achieve, what we are achieving and the importance that this league has in terms of the growth of cricket in the UAE, the wider Gulf and the international game.” The CEO of the ILT20 league pointed out in detail.
“It’s easy to dismiss the influence of the UAE. The UAE has got unbelievable facilities and privately invested facilities, and it is the backstop for all the ICC events.” White addressed.
He shed light on the corridor of how the Emirate Cricket Board (ECB) came to the rescue of the game whenever there are crisis elsewhere, like organizing the women’s T20 World Cup last year in a short period of time when Bangladesh was dismissed for political disturbance. The 2021 T20 World Cup or the Indian Premier League (IPL) was also staged twice due to the covid-19.
“At the drop of a hat, whether it’s the Bangladesh riots or the Champions Trophy or the IPL or Covid or whatever. They come to the UAE. It’s a turnkey solution. Beautiful stadiums, beautiful facilities, great training facilities, and of course, the UAE is very happy to host that. The contribution that the UAE makes to the global game is massive.” The ILT20 CEO elaborated.
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He also reflected on how the ECB keeps on investing in the grassroots of the game. The best 25 participating players for the ILT20 get the chance to rub shoulders with some of the best players in the world.
“I believe on the back of this experience they’ve had at ILT20; they’ve improved. They have qualified for the first time in eight years to play in the Asia Cup. We now invest in school festivals. We’ve reintroduced the secondary schools competition IL T20.” White concluded.
The only focus area, according to White, in this league is the absence of the crowds in the stands and they are hopeful of a packed house in the third season’s opener.