Money the root of all evil

As the England squad look ahead to the forthcoming Stanford 20/20 series, it will be interesting to watch the knock-on effect of such substantial amounts of cash being injected into the game. Of course the England players are already well paid with central contracts subsidised by various sponsorship deals and other commercial work. But in comparison with their footballing adversaries they are mere paupers in comparison. Now England's finest cricketers find themselves just 20 overs from a life-changing $1million windfall. But as we've seen from football, money can often have a negative effect. The vast sums of money paid to elite Premiership footballers has played a massive part in the significant increase in ticket prices at Premiership grounds. Should England defeat the West Indies in this one-off extravaganza the money they are paid by their counties and by England will pale into insignificance. Will the likes of Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff begin to question the money they are paid by the ECB?? Where does the next buzz come from, the next big payday? English players have so far been restricted in their participation in the IPL, which has seen players earn previously unheard of sums of money. Will England's leading players turn their backs on the countries in search of more money? As much as the Stanford 20/20 promises to be an enthralling spectacle, the knock-on effects could be disastrous for the game of cricket as a whole.