"Only thing they are interested in is money" - Sir Geoffrey Boycott slams ECB for letting The Hundred 'squeeze' Ashes 2023
Legendary English batter Sir Geoffrey Boycott has slammed the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) for being run by money-minded "suits".
His remark came in response to a query by a Twitter user who felt it was "all wrong" that the Ashes 2023 was "squeezed" without any tour games against county teams to accommodate ECB's white-ball competition, The Hundred.
"Agree but no chance of getting the money men to change their minds," Boycott tweeted in reply. "Cricket is run by Suits, only thing they are interested in is money."
Ashes 2023 began on June 16 without any tour game, and five days after the World Test Championship (WTC) final. The series went on till July 31.
The Hundred competition began the following day, August 1, and will go on till August 27.
Tour games used to be a big part of cricket's annual schedule until a few years ago. Teams traveling to other countries for matches would often play a handful of local state or county sides in practice matches to prepare for the main event.
On some tours, these matches would be greater in number than the main games and played even after the conclusion of the series. They also helped to showcase local talent and give youngsters the experience of playing against the best.
Now, due to packed international calendars and T20 leagues, these have been reduced to one or two games at most, sometimes played among the traveling party players themselves.
"England could have won all five Tests" - Sir Geoffrey Boycott
Boycott recently said Australia got away with a "great escape" in the 2023 Ashes, referring to the 1963 Steve McQueen film. He also claimed that England were good enough to win 4-0.
"If we are really honest, England could have won all five Tests, certainly they were good enough to win 4-0," Boycott wrote in his column for the Telegraph. "They were winning at Edgbaston for 90 per cent of the time and it was even-stevens at Lord’s until brainless batting cost them their wickets."
The 82-year-old batting legend played his last international match in 1982. He scored over 9000 runs across ODIs and Tests.