I was fortunate enough to talk with Greg Barclay this week.   

Greg Barclay served as the chair of the ICC for four years (2020-2024), a position he also held at NZ Cricket (2016-2020). He now sits on the board of NZ Rugby. It’s fair to say that Greg is very well schooled in the vagaries of our summer game and sport administration in general. Greg also had a stint as an independent director on the board of International Rugby League.   

Greg, a measured and experienced administrator, made some very astute points around the turgid and weighty situation that NZC has found itself in over the future of its T20 programme.  

The game is in a state of flux. 

There are many self-interested parties pulling the game in different directions, with a CEO who finds himself on the rack, being stretched like a medieval torture victim. An uncomfortable situation for Scott Weenink to find himself in. Uncomfortable enough to take a week off. Whether this was planned leave or a convenient escape is a moot point. He’s not there, that’s all we can be certain of.  

Plainly, a calm and considered process must be followed in order to arrive at a conclusion that is the best for the whole game, not just the gifted few who play cricket at the elite level.  

Greg said this T20 space has been with NZC for over 15 years. NZ is now the only player in world cricket that doesn’t have a competition akin to the major pro leagues.  

He made point that even without that foothold, has NZ Cricket actually suffered?  

NZC is adamant that the Super Smash is about player development, nothing more, nothing less. The results and position the Black Caps hold on the international scene suggest that in this space, the Super Smash has hit all its marks.   

Begs the question really, in grand scheme of things, and while the international calendar is still in flux itself, does anything need to change?