IPL helped ‘moderate to average’ England Test players get rich: Geoffrey Boycott – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Unable to defend their title at the recently concluded T20 World Cup in the Americas, the England team on Wednesday received flak from former cricketer Geoffrey Boycott, who feels that if players think results don’t matter they might well ‘join a circus’.

England exited the T20 World Cup after suffered defeat against India in the semis.

And earlier this year, India also hammered England 4-1 in Test series at home.

In his column for The Telegraph, Boycott wrote England cricket lovers want a ‘winning team’ that plays positive cricket.

“All we have had over the last few months is the Twenty20 World Cup in the Caribbean, where England performed poorly, the Indian Premier League, which helped a few of our moderate to average Test players get rich, and before that a miserable 4-1 Test series loss in India where England started well, but in the end were hammered, Boycott wrote in his column.

“In India last winter, ego and hubris got the better of some of our players. They came out with comments about being entertainers and how it was important to score quickly and thrill the crowds. All that is laudable but they should never lose sight that there is a winner and a loser and losing isn’t much fun.

“Test match cricket is not an exhibition. If our players start to think that results don’t matter then they might as well join a circus or go around the world like the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team doing tricks, laughing and joking and not bothering who wins so long as everyone has a fun time,” Boycott further wrote.

“Recently our batting has produced many moments of excitement mixed with some madness. This newfound Bazball strokeplay has been wonderful at times, but also lost us the Ashes. I hope the coach, captain and players have taken stock and will now temper their batting with some common sense.”

After the high-profile T20 World Cup, England are now currently involved in a three-match Test series against West Indies.