Enthusiastic Shane Warne Projects Bright Future for US Cricket Tour

In March, 2014, the Los Angeles Dodgers played the Arizona Diamondbacks in a Major League Baseball Opening Series at the iconic Sydney Cricket Ground in Sydney, Australia.

Now, cricket greats Shane Warne and Sachin Tendulkar are returning the favor by bringing cricket to three MLB stadiums this month with drop-in pitches.

The tour has been labeled the "Cricket All-Stars" series and kicks off on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET at the home of the New York Mets, Citi Field in Queens, New York.

Each match will feature 29 retired legends of the game from all over the world.

The format is Twenty20 (T20) cricket, which, at roughly three hours a game, is much shorter than the seven-hour one-day international matches or multi-day Test matches.

Twenty20 offers a much more exciting form of the game, according to Warne, and unlike other formats, it cannot end in a draw. 

It’s something he hopes Americans can identify with better. 

“A lot of people say 'oh cricket, it's five days, there's no result, it's boring,'” Warne said. “Well this is three hours. It's quicker than baseball and it's more action packed.”

Speaking from his hotel suite overlooking Times Square at the top of the New York Marriott Marquis Hotel, the slightly tanned, blond-haired Australian was animated and enthusiastic when describing the intricacies of the game and how it may appeal to a foreign audience.

“Cricket is very similar to baseball,” Warne said. “It's similar strategy. Like when you talk about bunting to get a guy over to first base, we [do that by] dropping it down for a single. And the pitcher, you've got curveballs and sliders, which is like a spin bowler [in cricket].”

Warne’s green eyes lit up when bringing up the fact that New York Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard intentionally threw at Royals hitter Alcides Escobar with the first pitch in Game 3 of the World Series.

“Pitchers and bowlers both send messages in a similar ways,” Warne said.

In cricket, the equivalent to Syndergaard’s inside fastball would be the bouncer. It is a pitch, or bowl, thrown around 100 mph that jumps up off the ground towards the batsman’s head. It is a bowl that, in rare instances, can be fatal.

In T20 cricket, the batsman’s goal is often to try to hit the bowler’s delivery out of the park for six runs. Warne is incredibly optimistic that this fact will drive interest here in America.

“It's like baseball in fast forward,” Warne said with a wry smile. “I would describe it as baseball meeting rock and roll, and that's why you'll like it. If you enjoy seeing homers, then it's [like] an adrenaline form of baseball. Does anyone get sick of seeing someone knock the ball out of the park? I don't think so.”

So what should we expect to see on Saturday? Well, in a typical T20 match, there’s maybe one six per over, or “inning” in baseball speak.

But thanks to the smaller dimensions at Citi Field, compared to a regular cricket ground, sixes are going to be a bit easier to come by, Warne said. That means the batsmen will put on more of a show for the fans.

Ben Sturner, president and CEO of Leverage Agency, who worked with Tendulkar to help organize the event, agrees with Warne’s assessment.

“Balls will be flying everywhere,” Sturner said. “There’s going to be a lot of runs, a lot of entertainment.”

While some of the best batsmen of all-time, such as Tendulkar, Brian Lara, Jacques Kallis, and Ricky Ponting, will be “going for the big shots,” as Warne says, don’t expect the various fast and spin bowlers to take it lightly. 

The competitive nature of the bowlers involved cannot be underestimated, according to Warne.

While some members of the cricket community have criticized the tour for its use of retired players, Warne stands by the plan hatched by Tendulkar and he, citing the immense self-respect of the all-stars.

“Everyone might not be at their absolute peak and best, but they’ve got pride,” Warne said. “They aren't going to let themselves down. They've all been practicing a lot harder than they let on.”

Warne added that every player who signed up is still very physically fit. For example, Wasim Akram of Pakistan, has been coaching and instructing in the years since retiring.

But the pundits may have a point. The average age on the rosters is 43 years old.

Courtney Walsh, 53, is the oldest player competing. Players typically retire from international cricket between the age of 35 and 40 years old. In order to play in the series, you have to be officially retired.

JEWEL SAMAD/Getty Images

In any case, the project seems to be doing well judging by the amount of excitement generated in the large expat communities in and around New York City.

“We’ve seen a huge spike in ticket sales since the players arrived,” Sturner said.

Over 20,000 tickets have been sold for Saturday’s match, and Leverage is fairly confident it will get “pretty sold out,” according to Warne.

But, you might be asking, why do this? Why bring cricket to a foreign land that has shown little, if not no interest in the sport in the past?

The answer is twofold, as Warne has always been realistic when assessing the current market in the United States.

He is well aware that there are already four major sports leagues flourishing here in America. The point of the Cricket All-Stars project is not to try and compete with the other sports, but to simply give people the opportunity to see something they have never seen before.

It’s a mindset similar to that held by MLB event planners ahead of the Opening Series in Australia, as they tried to globalize the game more.

For event organizers, it’s a matter of getting American butts in the seats in the hope the action on the field will spike interest. If it does, Warne is optimistic that the International Cricket Council could sponsor free clinics in the U.S. sometime in the future.

“I think a lot of people are cricket curious,” Sturner said. “The passion in the stands, that’s what sets [the sport] apart.”

A second major point of the Cricket All-Stars series is to give Indian, Pakistani, South African, West Indian, Australian and East African fans who have been living in the U.S. their entire lives a way to celebrate the game they love.

“The reason why we are coming to America is that there are so many people here that have never seen their heroes and idols play live,” Warne said. “Now, they've got a chance to see that. Me bowling to Sachin. Akram bowling to Lara. Glenn McGrath bowling to Ponting—the same countrymen!”

Warne and Tendulkar’s draw for teammates took place this afternoon, and here is a look at which all-stars will be playing together:

Furthermore, the second-highest TV ratings for the 2015 Cricket World Cup in February were out of America, according to Warne. 

“It's time for expats to introduce their American friends to cricket, and that's what we are hoping for—for them to bring them out,” Warne said. 

All 29 players have signed a three-year contract with Cricket All-Stars, meaning additional tours might be on tap for Warne and Tendulkar.

Other star players who may join the group sometime in the future include Brett Lee, Michael Clarke and Adam Gilchrist, according to Warne.

They have also looked into the possibility of going to other non-cricket playing countries, such as China and Singapore. But for now, they are just focusing on the three matches to be played this month.

“If this is a success, there's no reason why we won't come back to tour other U.S. cities in coming years,” Warne said. “We aren't looking to just come here once. We want to come back and keep coming back.”

All quotes were obtained by the writer unless otherwise noted.