State school cricket: MCC president Ed Smith says ‘better coordination’ could help tackle ‘digital addiction’

However, the 48-year-old said cricket still needed a “coordinated and aligned conversation” between the government, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), charities such as Chance to Shine, the MCC, and the schools themselves.

“There’s a whole series of things that have to come together, ultimately, to dramatically change the direction of cricket in state schools,” Smith told BBC Sport.

“What I think we can be reasonably clear about is that a comprehensive and coordinated approach to enhancing the value of sport can be done better than is currently being done.”

In 2023, the Independent Cricket Equality Commission (ICEC) reported that elitism and class discrimination in the game was partly due to a lack of state school cricket and a structurally misaligned talent pipeline with private schools.

The report indicated that about 58% of the men who will play for England in 2021 had private education, a much higher percentage than the 7% of the general population who went to private schools.

Smith added: “We know there is a narrowing of the social norm when it comes to the England squad.”

“The Knight Stokes Award will not be a complete or definitive solution. But if it can accelerate and elevate the conversation about the value of sports in public schools, that would be great.”

The Knight Stokes Cup is the brainchild of former England captain Michael Vaughan and MCC chairman Mark Nicholas.

The MCC Foundation, the organisation’s charitable arm, is responsible for arranging and delivering the competition, with local counties overseeing the early rounds.

Smith, who made the success of the first competition a major issue during his year-long stint as MCC president, said cricket had the potential to reduce “smartphone addiction” in school-age people.

He added: “I think the point that Jonathan Haidt makes brilliantly in his book The Anxious Generation is that it cannot be a coincidence that we are seeing such a rise in depression and anxiety among teenagers, given that people are spending so much time online.”

“There’s a tipping point about digital addiction in this country. It’s a great moment to have cricket at the forefront of what it can do.”