The BCCI today announced another money-spinning venture — ODIs at ‘neutral venues’ with an NRI concentration, beginning with next month’s two-match series in Abu Dhabi. But the additional workload on players already stretched could kill the goose that lays the golden egg.

The Board showed a preview of what one could expect from India playing at neutral venues, henceforth, by selling the in-stadia advertising, signage and title rights for the Abu Dhabi event to Percept D’Mark for a whopping Rs 16 crores. The Board will earn 50 percent of the generated revenue from one match (PCB will get the remaining 50 pc), apart from being completely responsible for the entire sale of their rights.

BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah says that the board is contemplating a series between India, Australia and England at a neutral venue in due time on the same lines (revenue to be shared by the respective boards).

This is a trendsetter for a calendar which, driven by money, could see Team India cricketers playing almost 50 per cent more matches than they currently do. Given that they already have a heavy workload (see box), and that their fitness is anyway in doubt, this could be an extremely myopic plan.

Consider this: Andrew Flintoff, Shaun Pollock, Stephen Fleming, Christopher Gayle and Jacques Kallis have, put together, played just a few more matches than Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh in the last three years. While players like Pietersen, Flintoff, Kallis and Gayle have played at an average of 12-15 matches a year, the Indians have ended up playing almost 20-22.

... contd.