Competing in overseas leagues will provide Indian players with terrific exposure: Shastri

Former India head coach Ravi Shastri feels more Indian players should be allowed to participate in foreign leagues, saying that playing alongside international stars overseas would give youngsters “terrific” exposure and broaden their cricketing horizons.

At present, the BCCI bars active Indian players from featuring in overseas T20 leagues. Indian cricketers can only play abroad after retiring from all forms of domestic and international cricket and securing a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the board.

Seasoned off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin recently became the first high-profile Indian cricketer to join the BBL, signing with Sydney Thunder for the upcoming season.

“India is a massive country, not everyone gets an opportunity to play, not everyone can make it. So why stop a guy (from playing in Big Bash League) if he can’t make it to the Test side, get a level C or level D contract?” Shastri said on the Willow Talk podcast.

“That exposure will help him when he comes back like the IPL has helped so many young players as they rub shoulders with top class players,” he added.

The 63-year-old, who coached India from 2017 and 2021, feels besides sharing the dressing room with an array of international cricketers, the players will also learn a lot from the games’ legends, who may be a part of the coaching staff.

“They learn to handle pressure. Additionally, they get to rub shoulders with big international stars like (Ricky) Ponting and (Stephen) Fleming and international players,” he added.

“It’s an education - and for me, there’s no better education than going overseas. That exposure is terrific, not just in cricketing terms but in understanding different cultures and methods. You learn so many things - a West Indian training method will be different from an Australian one,” he added.