Whatever the on-field result of the five-Test cricket series between England and India, which starts in Hyderabad on Thursday, off the field India will still be the winner. Indian money now rules the game. India generates more than 80p for every £1 of cricket’s international income. And in international cricket, what India says always goes.

While for an English cricket fan nothing will match an Ashes series with Australia, England – which once sent B teams to India, captained by players who had never before played for their country – now sends its best teams to India. It also loves India to visit the UK.

This is a historic turnaround. While there were only 13 Indian tours to this country in 64 years between 1932 and 1996, there have been eight since 2002. The reason is an Indian tour generates more money by selling rights to Indian television than an Australian tour does, money vital to sustaining cricket in this country.

This takeover of an international sport by a non-white country is unique. The vast amount of Saudi money pouring into sport has shaken up golf, football and many other sports but, while Saudis will sit at the top table, the actual running of these sports and their formats will remain the preserve of the traditional white powers of Europe and the US. Not so with India and cricket. Also, in these sports, Saudis do not have players who can take on the world, while Indian cricketers, dubbed the “dull........

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