India is the world's biggest cricketing market.A very However what sometimes goes unnoticed is the fact that India also has the largest cricket playing circuit as well. Hence a pretty big supply of talent which is quite widespread as well.
Take the current scenario. There are 4 IPL teams playing in the Champions League each with a fair share of the Indian stars and second and third rung players. In addition there is NKP Salve Challenger Trophy underway, which has Delhi (minus Shikhar Dhawan) taking on India Red & India Blue teams. In addition to all this there is an India A team taking on the West Indies A team in an 'A' test. That makes seven Indian teams playing across all 3 formats. That number is more than the total number of first class teams in most nations.And before I forget there is a 4 nation Under-19 tournament also underway.
Not too long ago there was an India A playing in South Africa. Another India A was taking on New Zealand A at home. And there was an India Under-23 team playing (and winning) in an Asian emerging nations tournament in Singapore.
Now how do we look at this issue?
- Is there excess cricket - even at the second rung international level? Curtailing the domestic calendar may be a solution.
- OR that India has such a depth that it can field multiple teams across formats simultaneously and be competitive also?