Shorter format key for cricket’s global growth and Olympic inclusion: Ashwin

NEW DELHI: Former Indian cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin said that T20 cricket is here to stay, asserting that its shorter format makes it better suited for global expansion and inclusion in the Olympics.

Ashwin, who is the captain and mentor of Dublin Guardians in the European T20 Premier League (ETPL), believes the T20 format will attract a larger pool of players and benefit leagues worldwide, while expressing uncertainty over the long-term future of ODI cricket.

Speaking at the media interaction for the ETPL 2026 Player Draft, Ashwin said, “If the game has to become global and it has to become an Olympic sport, the shorter the game, the more viable it is, and that’s how it’s going to become much more bigger and you will see a better sample size of players, which is also very critical for several of these leagues which run through. T20 as a sport is here to stay. I’m not too sure about ODI cricket”.

Ashwin stressed that adaptability is the key to success in cricket, saying players must keep improving and adjust to different conditions. He cited the recent India vs Ireland T20I series, where the Men in Blue suffered a historic 2-0 series loss to the Irish, as an example of how playing conditions can significantly influence the game and challenge conventional T20 strategies.

R Ashwin believes T20s are ‘here to stay, but ‘not sure about ODI cricket’ #RAshwin #T20 #reels #ODIs #cricket #virals pic.twitter.com/1wOkSvO9Co

— Sports Today (@SportsTodayofc) July 2, 2026

“I think cricket as a whole needs to be learned in a way that you get better every single day. You should be able to adapt. The name of the game is adaptation, which is why what happened recently between India and Ireland in that T20 series is a classic example of how conditions can eliminate a lot of aspects of the game that have been developed as a root cause of T20 as a sport,” he said.

According to a press release, the ETPL marked a significant milestone in its journey with the completion of its inaugural Player Draft on Thursday, as the league’s six franchises assembled their squads by selecting 36 players, with 12 each from Cricket Ireland, Cricket Scotland and the Royal Dutch Cricket Association (KNCB).

The draft saw players distributed evenly across the six franchises, with the majority of the Dutch players selected by Amsterdam Flames and Rotterdam Dockers. Meanwhile, Edinburgh Castle Rockers and Glasgow Cosmic selected nine of the 12 Scottish players, while Dublin Guardians and Belfast Wolves picked seven of the 12 Irish players.

Among the headline selections, Rotterdam Dockers secured highly rated all-rounder Jai Moondra with their opening pick of the draft. Moondra has emerged as one of Ireland’s brightest prospects and recently impressed against India in the T20I series, showcasing his wicket-taking abilities against the world champions. The Dockers further strengthened their squad by drafting Netherlands internationals Michael Levitt, Ryan Klein, Vikramjit Singh and Saqib Zulfiqar, alongside Scotland’s Jasper Davidson.

Meanwhile, Belfast Wolves bolstered their ranks with experienced Ireland international Paul Stirling and emerging left-arm spinner Matthew Humphreys, adding proven international quality to their inaugural roster.

R Ashwin, captain and mentor, Dublin Guardians, on the thought process behind his team’s picks, said, “While majority of our picks were Irish, I think nationality comes second; it’s about the quality of the player and how they will fit into our mix. I do believe that, going into an auction or a draft, every single player that you pick must be a playable resource. Of course, there must be an exciting amount of skill that they put on display, but they must be very playable. If a player is unavailable, somebody should be able to seamlessly come in and fill up that role.”

Jonty Rhodes, co-owner, Rotterdam Dockers, said, “Jai Moondra was someone we were particularly keen to bring into the squad after the way he has announced himself on the international stage. He is an exciting young talent with tremendous potential, and we’re delighted to have secured him. Alongside Jai, we’ve put together a really exciting group of players from across Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands. We believe we have a strong, balanced squad with the depth and quality to be highly competitive, and we’re looking forward to seeing them come together when the league gets underway.”

The remaining franchises also completed strong squads during the draft:

Amsterdam Flames: Curtis Campher, Kyle Klein, Tim Pringle, Aryan Dutt, Jordan Neill and Max O’Dowd
Irish Wolves: Matthew Humphreys, Fred Klaassen, Tim Tector, Paul Stirling, Zainullah Ihsan and Alexander Roy
Dublin Guardians: Benjamin Calitz, George Dockrell, Matthew Hollard, Craig Young, Noah Croes and Chris Greaves
Edinburgh Castle Rockers: Gareth Delany, Ross Adair, Jack Jarvis, Charlie Tear, Safyaan Sharif and Finlay McCreath
Glasgow Cosmic: Brad Currie, Matthew Cross, Paul van Meekeren, Michael Leask, Oliver Davidson and Chris McBride
Rotterdam Dockers: Jai Moondra, Michael Levitt, Ryan Klein, Jasper Davidson, Vikramjit Singh and Saqib Zulfiqar

The inaugural draft was one of the defining milestones in ETPL’s journey, with franchises backed by some of cricket’s biggest names, including Rahul Dravid, Steve Waugh, Matthew Hayden, Faf du Plessis, Heinrich Klaasen, Glenn Maxwell and Jonty Rhodes, completing the first-ever player selections in the league’s history.

Glenn Maxwell, co-owner, on Irish Wolves’ draft picks, said, “Incredibly happy with how the draft went. It’s a new experience for me to be involved in starting a team from scratch. To go through the risk management process, building a squad and a team that we can put on the park and be really competitive has been a really great experience. Really happy how the draft went; we were able to get the picks that we needed, the playing skills we needed to give ourselves depth as well.”

Steve Waugh, co-owner, Amsterdam Flames on his team’s picks said, “The first couple of choices were the players we wanted. And we knew after that we would have to think on our feet, improvise and see what the other teams were going to pick. Being the first choice (first team in the draft sequence) there’s a big gap between some of the selections. You have to wait and see what goes on in front of you. We were all talking offline to make sure what the next selection is going to be.”

With the squads now finalised, attention turns to the inaugural season of the European T20 Premier League, which will bring together the best cricketing talent from Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands while providing emerging players with the opportunity to compete alongside established international stars. (ANI)