….nothing. Well there will be nothing if the ICC gets its way. David Morgan’s (ICC president) suggestion of reducing Test matches to four days has come as quite a shock to me. If the governors of the game hope to attract more spectators and encourage fewer drawn Test matches, then I’m afraid reducing the number of days a Test match is played over will not work.
The people that do not enjoy 5-day Test cricket, will still not enjoy 4-day Test cricket – simple. In modern day life, it is difficult to commit five full days to watching cricket. People work, they have to provide for their families, Test matches will always have low attendances; that’s just the way it is. Day/night Tests will help this, which is why I would not mind such a development as long as the match is contested over five days and a series is not completely made up of day/night matches.
As for the results side of the argument, surely having fewer days would lead to more drawn Test matches? Trying to squeeze an innings in each day and hope for a result in such a batsmen dominated modern game is just devoid of common sense.
Instead, why not concentrate on reviewing the laws that govern the preparation of pitches in order to produce pitches that give a better balance between bat and ball so as to force results. We have seen many a time, when a home team win the first match of a vital Test series, they then go and produce dead pitches for the remainder games and bat out draws.
The ICC should also make winning a Test match more worthwhile. You’re free to offer suggestions on how, but maybe they can do something with the points system or even offer better financial reward for not just winning a series, but by winning a series by a certain margin.
The sanctity of cricket is not just Test cricket; the sanctity of cricket is 5-day Test cricket. Do the ICC really know what they are meddling with? Test cricket cannot be looked at through the same eyes as 50-over or Twenty20 cricket, which is what the ICC is doing. Test cricket must no be made susceptible to the same influences as the shorter form. Any such developments could be very dangerous. I hope the purists get their way, really.
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July 2nd, 2009 at 7:47 pm
The only way they can make test matches more exciting if they skew the format in favor of bowlers and set a certain standard and rules regarding the preparation of pitches.
They should understand that there will be more draws if the duration is reduced to four days.
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:17 pm
The suggestion itself is moronic. But what more should we expect from an organisation that is run by morons.
July 3rd, 2009 at 10:53 am
Wasim,
Absolutely. It’s common sense to address those issues. Why go and fiddle about with something they have no need to change. Shows how idiotic the ICC is.
Jack,
I have to agree with you. And for their president to make such a statement shows you that the moronicity runs to the very top. Careless statement from him.
July 3rd, 2009 at 12:56 pm
Well is the ICC trying to save test cricket or finish it once and for all with this rule? I don’t get it. Don’t they have anyone who knows about actually playing the game in ICC?
July 3rd, 2009 at 1:10 pm
Rayden,
This is the problem. We have people governing the game who have never played it at any meaningful level in their lives.
Are these people really the ones in the best position to be making such important decisions about cricket?
They should either encourage ex-players to take up ICC roles or gather a panel of them when discussing important issues. Administrators making decisions about cricket are like geeks trying to paint a work of art.
July 3rd, 2009 at 4:07 pm
I think the last two series between Aus & the Saffas and also the last ashes has shown why 5 day tests are good. Good cricket will always bring in a crowd, last day thrillers are great. 4 days won’t be enough if quality teams are playing good solid cricket no matter what the pitch, weather etc is.
July 3rd, 2009 at 7:06 pm
Es,
Exactly! There’s certain teams, I won’t mention which, that would rather draw a Test match when they have a chance to win it, just because they are ahead in the series. SA and Aus, do show the right mentality though.
July 3rd, 2009 at 11:22 pm
India play to draw, there is no doubt about it. It is a “do not lose at all costs” mentality. They have no urgency to make things happen. Stats prove this as does the style of batsmen like Dravid and Tendulkar who are part of ‘match wins’(when they are not drawing!) but are not ‘match winners’.
Saying that the likes of Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh and Yusuf Pathan will hopefully break the mould. They seems to play for the team rather than collect stats.
July 4th, 2009 at 8:42 am
not a big cricket fan but love the blog design, very nice.
July 4th, 2009 at 12:24 pm
Jack,
Yes I agree. It’s for that reason that Lara pips Sachin to the top spot for me.
Mash,
Thank you! Does this mean it’s “broken and ugly”?
Make sure you tell everyone that I didn’t put you up to this by putting a gun to your head or threatening to reveal your past secrets especially the story of what happened to your mate Bangers.
By the way, we’re all born cricket fans. Unfortunately, you’ve been swayed by croquet and and polo, with tea and biscuits at the palace. Worry not, you will revert one day….the Stani Army will make sure of that.
July 5th, 2009 at 1:17 am
haha no, it’s clean, simple and well thought out.
July 5th, 2009 at 2:03 am
I sincerely thank you mash, but enough of the compliments, my web designer can do without them.
But seriously, it takes time. I’m not certain we’re happy about everything on the blog yet, but it’s a lot better than when we first started out. You just gotta stick with it and things fall into place. You keep up the good work yourself!
July 5th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
yeah I just stick to the default skins and change the colours every once in a while.
July 5th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
how come you’re acting all grown up here?
July 5th, 2009 at 2:53 pm
It’s just one of his many talents Sis. There’s no need to be jealous.