Jonty Rhodes, speaking in his capacity as co-owner of Rotterdam Dockers at the franchise’s jersey launch at the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai, said the expansion of T20 franchise leagues around the world could erode bilateral ODI cricket, forcing players to choose between international careers and franchise circuits, even as he maintained the 50-over World Cup would preserve the format’s long-term relevance. Rhodes drew a comparison with football, where club football dominates outside major international tournaments, suggesting cricket could follow a similar path. Rotterdam Dockers, co-owned by Rhodes, Faf du Plessis, Heinrich Klaasen and John Abraham, will compete in the inaugural European T20 Premier League season running from August 26 to September 20, 2026.
Jonty Rhodes has spent a career being asked about fielding, about diving parallel to the turf at backward point, about a version of cricket he helped make electric before T20 even existed. These days, at events like this one, he is asked about something else entirely: what happens to the sport he loves when the format he once feared would kill Test cricket ends up threatening a different, older tradition instead.
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His answer, delivered not as prophecy but as considered observation from a man now sitting on the ownership side of the game, was clear enough. Bilateral one-day cricket, he believes, is the format most exposed to the gravitational pull of T20 franchise leagues, and cricket’s administrators and fans alike may need to prepare for a different shape to the international calendar.
Rhodes was speaking on the sidelines of the jersey unveiling for Rotterdam Dockers, held at the Cricket Club of India, ahead of the franchise’s entry into the inaugural season of the European T20 Premier League. The league, running from August 26 to September 20, 2026, features six city-based teams — Rotterdam, Glasgow, Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Dublin and Belfast — and represents the kind of expansion Rhodes was reflecting on.
A prediction rooted in history, not alarm
He suggested that 50-over cricket may be the format under the most pressure in the years ahead and that he expects fewer bilateral 50-over series. He added that the 50-over World Cup will keep the format relevant.
Players, choices, and a footballing parallel
He said players will start making choices among three international formats and expanding franchise opportunities. He suggested some may end their international careers earlier to focus on being franchise players around the globe.
He drew a comparison with football, where club commitments dominate outside major international tournaments.
Judgement, evolution, and the fan’s choice
Rhodes’ comments arrive at a moment when his own franchise sits at the sharp end of the trend he describes. Rotterdam Dockers — captained by Faf du Plessis and built around Heinrich Klaasen, Anrich Nortje, Logan van Beek and Roelof van der Merwe, alongside emerging Dutch talent — begin their ETPL campaign against Amsterdam Flames in Voorburg on August 26, the opening fixture of a tournament that will run through to September 20.
With Rahul Dravid’s involvement at Dublin Guardians and Abhishek Bachchan’s role as ETPL co-founder underlining the scale of investment behind the league, the coming weeks will offer an early test of exactly the shift Rhodes was describing — one franchise season at a time.
