The cricket landscape has shifted in the last decade. Players are prioritising franchise leagues over international cricket. Nicholas Pooran and Heinrich Klaasen are two fine examples of cricketers who decided to make the most of their careers, from a monetary perspective, in their primes.
However, not all cricketers are going that route. Some, like Harry Brook, are all in when it comes to representing their national team. In 2025, after being announced as England’s white-ball captain, Brook chose to pull out of the Indian Premier League (IPL). This cost him dearly. Not only did he miss out on earning INR 6.25 crore, but he was banned from the world’s biggest and richest cricket league until the 2028 season.
Harry Brook’s bid to become England’s Test captain
After Ben Stokes retired as England’s Test captain, the position is up for grabs. Brook has been Stokes’ deputy for some time, but the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) didn’t entrust him with the leadership due to his nightclub transgression in New Zealand last year, where he was punched by a bouncer the night before a match. Joe Root was picked ahead of him to replace Stokes for one Test before the latter returned for his final hurrah.
“It would be a great honour and a privilege to captain England in the longest format. Playing Tests is the best achievement of my career, and it is something I have aspired to do since I was young. It is not my decision, but if they ask me, then I will be honoured to accept the role,” Brook said before the India vs England T20I series.
To show the ECB that he puts Test and English cricket above everything else, Brook has stated that he won’t play in any franchise league except the ECB’s own The Hundred. Brook is willing to forgo millions to get the opportunity to lead England across formats and to just play international and domestic cricket.
“I’ve committed completely to England cricket. I’ve said that I don’t want to play any franchise cricket, barring The Hundred, and given everything that I want to do is to play cricket for England, and whatever I do on and off the field is to try and be and perform as well as I possibly can for England, and hence the reason I don’t play in the IPL and PSL and all the other franchise competitions,” he added.
