Rob Key: The Hundred can compete with other franchise leagues with more investment
- Published
Brendon McCullum (left) and Rob Key (right) have transformed England's Test fortunes since their appointments in 2022
The Hundred can be the "second-best" franchise competition after the Indian Premier League, says England managing director of men's cricket Rob Key.
Key said the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) must ensure The Hundred pays players enough to compete with franchise leagues around the world.
The third edition of the 100-ball tournament, launched by the ECB in 2020, takes place from 1-27 August.
"We have to concentrate on ourselves," Key told BBC Radio 5 Live.
"We need to make sure that our competition is good enough and pays enough."
The Indian Premier League (IPL), which started in 2008, is the world's biggest T20 franchise competition.
India's men's players do not participate in franchise leagues other than the IPL, with the money they earn from the tournament helping to ensure they do not need to.
"I don't see why our competition can't be second-best to the IPL," said Key.
"It can also be a better standard than the IPL because we've got more strength in depth in white-ball cricket than any other country."
Australia's Big Bash League started in 2011, with the Women's Big Bash beginning four years later.
There are other high-profile franchise leagues in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, while South Africa launched its SA20 competition earlier this year.
The first edition of the Women's Premier League (WPL), a women's version of the IPL, took place in March, with England all-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt earning £320,000. The top women's players in The Hundred earn £31,250.
The likes of the IPL, WPL and SA20 pay players more than The Hundred because they are funded by private investment, which Key accepted is a challenge.
"That money might not be there at the moment," he said.
"The top salary in The Hundred is £125,000 but you don't mind that at the moment because we are building towards something in the years to come, and the money will go up.
"That's how we will get the money and that alongside the central contracts will put English cricket in a great place."
The first edition of Major League Cricket in the United States starts in July.
With Major League Cricket clashing with the British summer, and vast sums on offer, there is a concern players could opt out of The Hundred and even England white-ball fixtures to play in the USA instead.
However, Key said he feels that is unlikely and making The Hundred a more attractive offer for players will prevent that happening.
"I don't see any time, certainly in the near future, where a Test player or centrally-contracted player says, 'I'm off to America for three weeks' - that's not a threat at the moment," said Key.
"There is no reason why we cannot have a better league than the American league. There's no reason why we can't sort out our franchise competition so that players say, 'Why would I go to America? I'll stay here and play in our competition'."
"What we want is a bit more control to be able to say yes or no, and be in the right position to say, 'No, you can't go and play there, we are looking after you really well here anyway'.
"So we've got to focus on our own game and invest well to make sure we can afford to pay people enough in the future."
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