University cricket is safe but T20 more likely, says Graveney

JAMES COYNE: MCC has provided funding and administration for the six MCC Universities centres since 2004, to the tune of £7.5m, but they are withdrawing in order to redirect funds towards the ongoing redevelopment of Lord’s

^{Players of Durham MCCU}

A wider geographical spread and more white-ball cricket are likely to be two reforms introduced by the ECB when it takes over the funding of elite university cricket from MCC in 2020.

MCC has provided funding and administration for the six MCC Universities centres since 2004, to the tune of £7.5m, but they are withdrawing in order to redirect funds towards the ongoing redevelopment of Lord’s.

David Graveney, the ECB national performance manager, was asked last year by Andrew Strauss – a Durham University graduate and the director of England cricket – to oversee a review into the structure of university cricket. Some county officials say privately they do not believe MCCUs, which produce roughly a fifth of English first-class cricketers, are deserving of ECB money.

Graveney told The Cricketer that a tender process will open for new cities to join the existing six MCCUs – who draw on students from both traditional and newer universities in Oxford, Cambridge, Durham, Loughborough, Leeds/Bradford and Cardiff. The south-west and north-west are at the moment unrepresented.

He said: “One thing we have seen is that some cricketers – and this applied as much to women as men – have had to compromise their degree choice to be at a centre of excellence. It was having an effect on their degree choices. So we need a little better geographical spread so students do not have to compromise on academic aspirations.

^{David Graveney is confident of the future stability of university cricket}

“There won’t suddenly be 30 universities in the running, but we will have an open and transparent tender process. This will be a joint partnership between the ECB and universities.

“Exeter, Bristol, Southampton Solent and Manchester have all shown interest in becoming an MCCU in the past. We need to see whether they are still interested. It will be great to talk to them and others, because we need to keep young people playing the game. We are committed to working with all existing partners.”

Graveney said that striking the right balance between red and white-ball formats will be crucial from 2020, when the English game passes through a wider overhaul.

The six MCCUs play three three-day games against the counties. They also compete against each other in the two-day MCC Universities Championship, and alongside other universities in the 50-over BUCS league. But the combined MCC Universities XI have already withdrawn from the 2nd XI Championship. Separate to the MCCU scheme are the traditional Varsity games between Oxford University and Cambridge University.

Graveney said: “There is a wider trend to play more white-ball cricket. So fitting some T20 around exams might not be the worst idea in the world – good for a student’s headspace. It’s a bit tougher to fit in a three-day match. All the universities have different exam blocks, which makes it tricky to schedule. I hope we can achieve a balance between T20 and the three-day game.”

Crucially, Graveney said that both the MCCUs and the 18 first-class counties wanted the early-season three-day fixtures to continue – the only debate was about first-class status.

Graveney said: “First-class status wasn’t part of our original brief. Graeme Fowler, who I’ve consulted with, always says that he never intended for the centres to have first-class status when he set up Durham MCCU. But, I must stress, it’s a matter still to be debated.

“The university players still want those fixtures as an opportunity to put themselves in the shop window. The first-class tag is important for them.

^{Action in places like The Parks could revolve more around T20}

“I watched a session of Loughborough MCCU v Lancashire early in the season. It was a typical low, seaming wicket, and the Lancashire players had to bat a long time to make runs at the start of their first innings. It’s what they want early in the season. The counties think these games still have worth.”

Some MCCUs have recently embarked on pre-season tours, self-funded by students. Graveney said the ECB would consider partly funding an overseas tournament between the universities. Perhaps most intriguing is the ECB’s plan to tie the universities into their Cricket Unleashed strategy, which places emphasis on participation and inner-city environments.

Graveney said: “Cricket Unleashed makes it very clear that education is a crucial part of the strategy. And, actually, it is my opinion that cricket has been really good about intertwining cricket and studies. It’s never been either/or.”

He and his line manager, ECB national talent manager Alun Powell, who previously held a similar role at the Rugby Football Union, have been looking at what cricket can learn from rugby.

Graveney said: “One part of the RFU structure that interests me is the educational officer – it’s almost like a careers advisor. It’s an important position for a young person coming out of school to come into contact with.”

Some active county players also at MCCUs include Sam Cook (Loughborough and Essex), Kiran Carlson (Cardiff and Glamorgan) and James Bracey (Loughborough and Gloucestershire).

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