Stokes not happy about Smith's county stint but Aussie star relishing chance for Ashes warm-up on English soil

Of course he does. The UK passport may now be much weaker since they left the EU, but he'd still have one. His life is a lot easier for having one. He can't just enter the UK on an Aussie passport and earn income derived from a UK employer. He would need a work visa. It's annoying to apply for. Whereas as a UK citizen he could just enter and start working. Only a dingus wouldn't pick up a second passport (particularly if it's of a stable western nation) if they were eligible. Unless of course Steve Smith has future political ambitions! Warney always entered the UK on his German passport after all.

Does he even have one?

Hi Nick, We can agree that England's red-ball specialists will have no cricket commitments during the ICC World Cup next Oct and Nov. Which ones do you think would be willing, affordable and beneficial to State associations for a brief Sheffield Shield stint ? Noting that all of them performed modestly here during their last Ashes series lost 0-4. Plus, a few observations on the cricket economy- Australia offers 6 teams 10 rounds. England offers 18 teams 16 rounds. In other words, England offers 4.8 times the match opportunities to foreign and local players. England can offer a foreign player a county spot, and 197 other players can still get games. Each time Australia offers an import a spot, one of its best 66 players misses out. Not to mention the next 132 ones all the way down to 198th. The Shield is a loss-leading R&D project whose major purpose is to develop Australian players. Any cash available for foreign players is far better invested in the BBL, where they can help generate high revenue via TV ratings, spectators, sponsors, advertising, merchandise, corporate hospitality, food and beverage, etc. Each Shield match costs more than $150k in player payments, staff, ground hire, travel, accommodation, catering etc. It has no lucrative broadcasting deal or other revenue streams. No paid marketing is undertaken. It is generally played midweek to very few spectators, despite offering free entry. Many venues are lower-cost suburban ones. The benefits in contracting foreign rookies or (generally unavailable) stars are non-existent.

Maybe not for Brook. But England has test only specialists who will be sitting back and twiddling their thumbs in October and November. Face it, you are saying that Australians can do one thing, but no one else can.

Hi Opeo, You wrote "It is just astonishing that not once in the last 25 years have the stars aligned to allow a foreign cricketer to play in the Shield." It is public knowledge that many have, and I named 8 of them for you. You wrote "The Melbourne Stars signing an overseas player does not help the Bushrangers win the Shield, and is it even the same people that makes that decision?" It is public knowledge that Cricket Victoria owns the Stars and Rebels, and appoints their boards and selectors, and employs their staff and players, just as it does for the Victorian team. You wrote "Are Harry Brook and Joe Root even in the English ODI and T20 teams? " It is public knowledge that they have been during 2022 and 2023, and I listed the number of games each has played for you. I've also pointed out elsewhere that England has toured for most of every southern summer, for many many years now. The ICC's FTP 2023-2027 continues that pattern, and T20 leagues in SA and the UAE, and ICC World Cups, compound the unavailability of good English players (someone else proposed Brooks and Root) for Shield cricket. How about we just agree to disagree and move on.

Hi Nick, At the end of the 2025/26 summer, a T20WC will take place. So I doubt that the ECB will be considering those ODIs and T20Is in NZ in Oct/Nov 2025 to be "meaningless bilateral series". But I guess we'll find out in 2 years' time !

Yep, 10 overseas players in 25 years. There are something like 20 Australians playing county cricket this year, and I have no idea how many players there are from other countries. “and every State signs multiple overseas players each season, but for their BBL teams for maximum ROI.” I am not sure that this is relevant, or even makes sense. The Melbourne Stars signing an overseas player does not help the Bushrangers win the Shield, and is it even the same people that makes that decision? And if Pieterson and other English players are willing to play Sydney grade cricket they are clearly not going to expect much money to play Shield cricket, so the ROI would be phenomenaly good in that situation.Eng season is virtually stand-alon it runs concurrent to the IPL, literally the most lucrative cricket tournament in the world, and despite this there are people that choose county cricket over the IPL. I am not disagreeing with you. I may have been a bit argumentative but I am trying to understand what, to me, is a very confusing situation. I think the contract window factor might be a massive, and understated, influence. If Shield sides could sign new players in September, there is no reason why Kevin Pieterson does not play for a Shield side instead of in Sydney grade cricket. The same could be true of countless English/west Indian players that have good county/west indies first-class seasons while being outside the English/West Indian test teams. The Shield standard is good, but not so good that a good county cricketer could not play in it. There are guys batting the top five of Shield teams that average less than 30, and bowlers taking the ball inside the first 20 overs that average over 35.

There’s just one problem… before Eng arrives in Aus in Nov 2025, it will tour NZ for three ODIs and three T20Is. How is that a problem? Players skip bilateral Odis and t20s all the time. Not a problem at all. Like I said, it's about sacrifice. CA would happily let Smith sit out a meaningless bilateral ODI series to play county cricket if the situation was reversed.

Brook playing 2-3 Shield games before the 2025/26 Ashes sounds great... in principle. There's just one problem... before Eng arrives in Aus in Nov 2025, it will tour NZ for three ODIs and three T20Is. Which illustrates my point perfectly- the best foreign players are unavailable for Shield cricket.

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Opeo, let's agree to disagree. And a quick browse in Cricinfo reveals that- Yes, Brook played 20 T20Is in 2022, and has played 3 ODIs so far in 2023. Yes, Root played 6 ODIs in 2022. Yes, during the past 25 years at least 10 overseas players have represented States (as opposed to BBL franchises)- Crane, Somerville, Lumb, Botha, Flower, Tanvir Sohail, Younis Khan, Blignaut, Goodwin, Ervine. I'll leave you to find gaps in England's winter tour programs during the past two decades. Bottom line is- Aus has only 66 spots for first-class cricketers (and prospective Test players) at any one time, while Eng has 198; the Aus season coincides with most other nations' first-class seasons and T20 leagues; the Eng season is virtually stand-alone; and every State signs multiple overseas players each season, but for their BBL teams for maximum ROI.

“If players weren’t re-contracted each April, they’d be unemployed for the winter, unsure whether they’d be re-contracted, and totally unprepared for the following summer.” Sure, as I said, county cricket seems to allow player signings until two weeks before the tournament starts. ”On availability , are Harry Brook and Joe Root even in the English ODI and T20 teams? Joe Root certainly is not in the T20 team? Are you certain that the English test side has been busy every October, November, February, and March, year in, year out, for at least the last two decades? Also, I enjoyed how every West Indian player was dismissed as ‘not good enough’ earlier without a second of thought. This, in my opinion, is arrogant. Kemar Roach has a better test bowling average than Mitchell Starc. He is obviously good enough to play in the Shield, and interested enough in first-class cricket to play in the county competition. Jason Holder, Jayden Seales, Chanderpaul, Kyle Mayers, and Bonner would all be good enough too, and most of them have played county cricket. Despite this, we have never seen them, or any other West Indian cricketer in the Shield in the last 25 years or whatever it is. the Shield pays nowhere near as well as simultaneous T20 leagues in South Africa, the UAE and elsewhere” As I said, the pay is irrelevant. You have made some good points but this one is irritating. Money is obviously not a big factor in Labuschagne and Smith playing county cricket. Smith did not register himself for the IPL auction this year. Money was obviously not a big factor in Pieterson playing Sydney grade cricket either.If there are Englishmen willing to play Sydney grade cricket they are obviously willing to play in the Shield, if not more so. Honestly, there are some good reasons why the Shield could never be stacked with foreign players like County cricket, but it is just astonishing that not once in the last 25 years have the stars aligned to allow a foreign cricketer to play in the Shield.

It's a sacrifice. Smith is sacrificing either family time or clearly more money on the T20 circuit, so I'm still unsure why you think others are incapable of doing the same in future years. There is a window for Brook in 2025 before the Ashes to play Shield cricket in October.

This is how the contracting of Australian full-time professional cricketers works. Annual contracts end each April, after the Shield final which is common-sense. CA then announces its 20-odd contracted players for the next 12 months, on the biggest money. Each State then contracts 20-odd players, on lower money. Those 150-odd players then undertake pre-season training during April-August, to be ready to play in the domestic competitions commencing in September. If players weren't re-contracted each April, they'd be unemployed for the winter, unsure whether they'd be re-contracted, and totally unprepared for the following summer. I'm sure that the AFL and the NRL would do similarly.

Hi Nick, Of course a State would love to sign Root or Brook for a Shield season- if they were available and affordable- but they're not ! Their commitments for 2022/23 are below- October - England in Australia October -November - T20WC in Australia November - England in Australia, then England and Lions in UAE December - England in Pakistan January-February - England in South Africa, and Lions in Sri Lanka February - England in New Zealand March - England in Bangladesh, and IPL prep Future Australian summers will be just as filled with England team tours. Plus, the Shield pays nowhere near as well as simultaneous T20 leagues in South Africa, the UAE and elsewhere.

During our summer, most foreign stars are focused on other things (their international games, their own simultaneous domestic seasons, other lucrative T20 leagues, rest, family time). They wouldn’t be interested in short stints in a low-paying and poorly-attended Shield competition often played away from Test grounds. But yet Steve Smith was happy to do this in England, so how can you be so certain no international player wants to do this in the Shield? Do you honestly think no shield team would want to sign Joe Root or Harry Brook?

State contracts are finalised each Apr/May If this is true, this too would actually be a massive reason why there are no English cricketers in the Shield. Imagine if County clubs had to finalise contracts in October/November. As good as Bancroft’s Shield season was, he does not get a county contract this year because contracts were already finalised six months ago, and his Shield form 15 months ago was not sufficient to get him a contract for this year. By the time the next contract window is open, the massive amount of runs that he scored in the Shield occurred nine months ago. There is no guarantee that he does not average in the low 30s in the next Shield season making whichever county team that signs him regret their decision.

Kevin Pietersen's Australian summers- 2001/02 - don't know, but his debut county season in 2001 came too late to get him contracted here (State contracts are finalised each Apr/May) 2002/03 - Grade cricket for Sydney University (at age 22) 2003/04 - toured India with England A 2004/05 - toured Zimbabwe and South Africa with England 2005/06 - toured Australia with World XI, and India and Pakistan with England 2006/07, 2007/08 onwards- etc etc As soon as he became good enough for the Sheffield Shield, he became unavailable for/not needing a contract. Using him as an example doesn't help your case. Mason Crane played for NSW in 2017, and plenty of other Englishmen play in the BBL every season. It can still be done although Covid-19 made it impractical during 2020/21 and 2021/22. We simply don't have the capacity to support high numbers of imports, the best of whom can earn more elsewhere. To the point that many now eschew the BBL in favour of its shorter and higher-paying South African and UAE equivalents. I think that the biggest issue is that while allowing one foreigner at every County club still leaves 180 spots for Englishmen, allowing one at every State leaves only 60 for Australians. And the quality and availability of those Englishmen who are available doesn't provide much ROI for a State association.

I googled it and it honestly seems like Cricket Australia do not allow foreigners/Englishmen in the Shield. Apparently the chief executive of the English Cricket Board has been lobbying the Cricket Australia to allow English cricketers into the Shield. He would not be doing that if there was no barrier to English cricketers playing in the Shield. If the Kevin Pieterson timeline you described he was playing Sydney grade cricket after two or three years of averaging over 60 in county cricket. Yes, he was not a household name at the time but he was obviously good enough for Shield cricket.

OK Opeo, I'll try again. Strauss made his first-class debut in 1998, played Grade in Sydney in 1999 aged 22, and made his Eng debut a full four years later in 2003. So when he played Grade he was a rookie and nowhere near NSW selection. And once he made the Eng side he no longer had the availability or need to return and play Shield. Pietersen made his county debut in 2000, played Grade in Sydney in 2002 aged 22, and made his Eng debut two years later in 2004. So when he played Grade he was a rookie and nowhere near NSW selection. And once he made the Eng side he no longer had the availability or need to return and play Shield. Exactly the same pathway has applied in Grade competitions across Aus for plenty of other Eng cricketers- * initially, available all English winter but unproven * later, proven but unavailable, except maybe for a brief BBL stint.