rob key: the hundred will ‘stable future of our game’ – however first-class cricket needed at height of summer season

england dealing with director of guys’s cricket rob key says the hundred will “steady the destiny of our game” – however is adamant purple-ball suits have to be played at the height of summer time.

a excessive-overall performance evaluate, chaired by way of former england captain and director of cricket sir andrew strauss and which key’s part of, has endorsed a discount inside the days of domestic cricket and a streamlined pinnacle division in the county championship.

the hundred, currently in its 2d season, is set to remain a part of the calendar until at least 2028 with the match held in august all through the college holidays.

speaking to sky sports activities cricket for the duration of the second one lv= insurance take a look at among england and south africa at emirates antique trafford, key stated: “the hundred is an essential part of the broadcast deal for one however i surely suppose it’ll achieve this plenty for our game, it’ll stable the future of our sport.

“it’s far the great fashionable of white-ball cricket we’ve got, the first-rate gambling towards the quality. you want the first-rate players and the first-rate teams going at it over and over again and that is what this does.

“however we cannot have human beings no longer playing first-rate cricket in that window. i do not need gamers now not to be gambling any purple-ball cricket in that length. it just would not work.

“looking at this [england vs south africa] series, it’d were higher if we were capable of provide our check cricketers a few pink-ball cricket.

“the general consensus, though, is that we play a long way too much cricket. in case you are a red-ball player most effective, like dom sibley is as an instance, there’s no time to coaching and put together.

“it’s all travel-play, travel-play. in a perfect international, you need your players so as to education and prepare and also have time to get better and play.”

the excessive-performance assessment has featured input from the likes of sir dave brailsford, the former performance director of british cycling, and dan ashworth, the erstwhile director of elite improvement at the football association.

key said: “what we did not do turned into say to them, ‘how do you observed we will play a cowl power better?’ we said, ‘how does your machine paintings?’ what are the priorities for your recreation’.

“sir dave brailsford spoke approximately the fact it isn’t just about prevailing, it’s approximately the style and the manner you pass about it and bring yourself as a crew.

“[england test captain] ben stokes and teach brendon mccullum encompass that, joe root, and i idea the trent bridge win [while england beat new zealand earlier this summer time after a blistering run chase] when you had a complete crowd who had come in totally free changed into the manner you behavior yourself.

“[this assessment] is not pretty much check cricket. it’s about seeking to give you something this is nice for english cricket.

“we are seeking to make a higher system than what we’ve got were given now, to make certain we’ve got were given the exceptional cricket possible.

“now it’s for the game to discuss. this is not us pronouncing, ‘that is what we are doing, you have to get on board with it’.

“the whole lot we do is going to accept to the game to say ‘do you want to try this?’ it isn’t always approximately us ramming things through or whatever like that.