Business of T20 leagues: How far can cricket boards go to draw the line for their players?

Adam Gilchrist was a trendsetter in the game across formats. The man revolutionized the role of wicket-keeper-batters forever during his playing years. Post retirement too, Gilchrist is turning out to be a 'trendsetter' once again. He has been the first among popular voices to go on record and say "It will almost be commercial suicide for Cricket Australia to allow a player (in this particular instance, he quoted David Warner) to go head-to-head" against the Big Bash League (BBL).

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This week marks the beginning of yet another global whirl that could alter the course of cricket once again for the fourth time in 45 years.

Gilchrist's comments came on Wednesday and were in reference to the two new T20 leagues that are coming up in South Africa and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from next year. These two leagues don't just clash with each other where window is concerned, but also clash with the BBL - Cricket Australia's own domestic T20 league - and it would indeed be 'embarrassing for the Australian board if one of their own T20 stars were to opt for an overseas league over their very own BBL. "Commercial suicide is secondary. The primary worry should be the embarrassment it'll cause," said those tracking developments, reacting to Gilchrist's statement. The ex-cricketer's reference to Warner in particular was just by way of an example. Be it the aggressive left-handed opener or Australian captain Pat Cummins, or the equally popular Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, Josh Hazlewood or the many other Aussie T20 options - Gilchrist's comments just painted the 'big picture' that he wants the