In a candid and explosive statement, former Cricket South Africa president Dr. Ali Bacher has expressed concern over the growing dominance of cricket by India, Australia, and England, while other boards, including South Africa, Pakistan, and the West Indies, are being marginalized. Dr. Bacher, a pivotal figure in bringing Proteas cricket to the mainstream post-apartheid, shared his views during an exclusive interview while observing India and South Africa opening Test.

“Cricket today is dominated by India, Australia, England. South Africa has been marginalised, Pakistan has been marginalised, West Indies have been marginalised. That’s not good,”

remarked Dr. Bacher, emphasizing the need to grow the game globally. He expressed disappointment that his earlier objective, during his tenure as chairman of ICC’s development committee, to spread the game worldwide is not being realized today.

Dr. Bacher addressed the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) efforts to promote the sport in the United States. While acknowledging the ambitious plans, he expressed skepticism about cricket’s massive growth in the USA due to substantial financial requirements.

“You need billions and billions of dollars to get a small niche of that (USA) market. To be honest, I called it a day after two occasions. It wasn’t going to happen,” he recalled.

Instead, he advocated for the growth of cricket in Asia, citing the enormous potential in countries like South Korea and Japan. Dr. Bacher cautioned against pursuing the US. market, noting the massive investments in other sports like baseball, basketball, and rugby.

Speaking about the current state of South African cricket, Dr. Bacher acknowledged a decline in world-class players but expressed optimism about the nation’s cricket future. He reminisced about the strong cricketing legacy with players like AB de Villiers, Jacques Kallis, and Shaun Pollock highlighting the current world-class talent, Kagiso Rabada.

Reflecting on the commercial growth of Indian cricket, Dr. Bacher recalled a time when he negotiated broadcast rights with Jagmohan Dalmiya, stating,

“When I asked (Jagmohan) Dalmiya, how much people would come to watch, he said around 100,000 at Eden Gardens. At that time, cricket broadcast in India was controlled by Doordarshan. I offered a quarter million rands, and he (Dalmiya) couldn’t believe it.”

Despite the evolving dynamics in global cricket, Dr. Bacher expressed satisfaction at being a part of cricket’s commercial success in India, attributing it to the country’s massive cricket-loving population.