Hayden batting for cut in the calendar and a new world Test championship

The Queensland-born Australian right-hander, who scored 8,625 runs at an average of 50.73 in a 103-Test match career spanning 15 years, is now embracing his role as administrator with equal gusto.

Following on from his final Test appearance in January, 2010 and less than a year after his final bow with the Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League, Hayden has become a director of Cricket Australia and of Queensland Cricket.

His initial remit might be national, but his aspirations are international.

Whether the topic is the packed international schedule, the growth of Twenty20 or England’s Ashes domination, he is not short of an opinion.

“There’s no question that there’s too much,” is the 39-year-old’s response to the debate over a cluttered global cricketing calendar which saw England spend five months away from home playing in the Ashes and then the ICC World Cup.

“Obviously that’s an easy statement to make, but finding the solution is a lot more difficult.

“Things have got to give but then again you cannot create time. So what would give? Is it less county cricket, is it fewer countries in the international programme?

“These are all discussions that need to be had.” So what would Hayden change?

“Firstly, you need a Test championship,” he says.

“And I don’t think you need a Champions Trophy, that’s one too many 50-over tournaments.

“I do still love the 50-over game, but I like the burgeoning franchise element of the IPL and other leagues, the fan-based elements of that.

“Football is a good blueprint to follow with the European leagues. Cricket is trying to get exposure as an entertainment package.”

And therein lies Hayden’s primary drive. The former Hampshire and Northants batsman is a big advocate of the IPL and other Twenty20 initiatives, for their ability to help cricket transcend sporting boundaries.

“Twenty20 has moved the sport on and into a new international market,” continues Hayden, who made just nine Twenty20 appearances for Australia and contrastingly won 161 one-day international caps.

“You’ve got people who spend money on lifestyle and other sporting events now putting their money into cricket.

“It’s a very competitive market place for people’s money, and the IPL and other forms of Twenty20 has a focus not just on providing sport, but the whole round entertainment package.

“Twenty20 provides a great mix and it’s a very exciting time to be a part of and we have to embrace it.”

Hayden has great respect for the game that gave him so much, and does not want to be seen to be brashly shouting from the rooftops for immediate reform.

“First and foremost, I see the two roles as my way of giving back to the sport that has given me enormous thrills,” he says.

“I’ve always had a great passion for cricket, and even now, I’m still up to my neck in it with regards to administrative roles with Cricket Australia and Queensland Cricket. There are many layers to the administrative process, and it’s a difficult skill-set to acquire.

“But what I can offer is a contemporary opinion on how the game is viewed.

“Cricket for me needs to embrace the digital media market place, I think people are tired of having adverts blatantly thrust in their faces.

“Cricket needs to find new and innovative ways to target fans.

“We are seeing better cricket than ever before, and we need as many people to realise that as possible.”

Some of the cricket seen over the winter in his native land was enough to help the game broaden its horizons.

And even Hayden the idealist acknowledges, albeit begrudgingly, that England’s 3-1 win over the Aussies was good for the sport.

He says: “It was a frustrating defeat as an Aussie, and I say this in a sense of appreciating how England must have felt so often, because once you get the other side of a momentum streak, you cannot come back.

“And the scoreline makes it look like we were been absolutely hammered. But there’s subtle differences between winning and losing.

“What it does do is keep the legend of the Ashes and the history of it alive.

“And in Australia we are already excited about the next chapter.

“The great thing about cricket, and especially the Ashes, is that it doesn’t just appeal to one community or class, it penetrates working institutions, everyone from whatever walk of life wants to know about the Ashes.

“Currently cricket in this country (Australia) is going through three different reviews; corporate governance, finance and performance.

“Cricket is at the heart of Australian history and the nation has embraced the need for change.

“We are very proud of our cricketing culture.

“Sometimes it can take a big loss to precipitate a changing of the guard, and that is what has happened.”

The face of that old guard was a long-time team-mate of Hayden, Ricky Ponting, whose prowess with the bat will probably be overlooked in time by the unenviable footnote of him being the only Australian captain to lose three Ashes series.

“Ricky Ponting won several titles, though, as captain of Australia,” counters Hayden.

“He won three Ashes series, and he virtually won all the titles around the world, with the exception of the Twenty20.

“Of course he benefitted from having a great side, but great sides have to have a great leadership structure. And Ponting was at the head of that.

“I think he will be remembered individually as one of the great leaders in batting and in driving batting culture.

“He will go down in history as one of Australia’s all-time finest cricketers.”

History will remember Hayden as statistically the greatest opener produced by Australia.

His story as a cricket administrator is only just beginning.

Opening out after declaring his innings closed...

Matthew Hayden, one of Australia’s greatest opening bastmen, has chronicled his glorious career in his life story.

The 39-year-old Queenslander played 103 Test matches over a 15-year career for Australia and 161 one-day Internationals.

Derided for not being technically gifted, his mental resolve and physical attributes made him a handful for opposition bowlers throughout the world.

“Writing the book was really to get closure on a fun time of my life,” he says. “I’m really proud and fortunate to look back on my career and this is a chance to publicly thank my family and my support base for all their help.

“I have spoken openly and candidly about that level of support that gave me the ability to stay on the stage for so long.”

Hayden also spent three years in county cricket with Hampshire and Northamptonshire around the turn of the century.

“English county cricket is a community I have a lot of respect for, whether that be at Hampshire or Northamptonshire,” he adds.

“I’m fortunate to have had such a diverse cross-section of experiences through county cricket, the IPL, and Test matches etc.”

Standing My Ground, by Matthew Hayden, Aurum Press £18.99, is out on May 17.