Test cricket is dying, let's help save it

[Wedge McManus]

SA produces plenty of green seamers btw. As do England from time to time. NZ actually produces wickets that start green but turn into roads these days. On the four day experiment, like you said, let's agree to disagree.

Well that's the sensible option

 

[Wedge McManus]

How to fix cricket
1 Stop India from blocking T20 becoming an Olympic sport

2 Get rid of all T20 internationals outside of Olympic qualifiers

3 Having the Cricket in the Olympics will open the sport to new markets and you will see increased government investment in a lot of non traditional markets. In the short term that will do nothing for test cricket but you can see the growth in 15 aside rugby off the back rugby 7s becoming an Olympic sport

4 Reduce meaningless ODIs open the World Cup up to minnows again. People say that having minnows in the World Cup is a waste of time but Sri Lanka started out as a minnow and won the 96 World Cup and were runners up in 07

5 Create a clear path to gaining test status so minnow nations know what they have to achieve and can set goals around achieve test status

6 Help aspiring nations set up domestic first class competitions so the players can get exposure to playing red ball cricket.

7 Have more A tours so young players can get exposure playing in overseas conditions

8 Let aspiring nations play first class matches against test teams A sides and other aspiring nations so they get use to touring and playing overseas

Were is the money coming from to achieve all of this? Also, no one seems to be able to counsel India these days, they just do whatever.

 

[Wedge McManus]

I don’t see why it is so hard to simply understand that closer contests mean more interest.
If the competition is close, it doesn’t matter so much if the quality is lower.
Focus on getting sides more competitive than changing the format itself

Four day tests would, by their very nature, create a more competitive format. Instead of teams being able to block everything early on to make hay later, players would have to score quicker to chance a win. This would open up wicket taking opportunities. That said I don't believe Sri Lanka, Windies, Bangladesh etc would have a chance in any format under any conditions.

 

[Wedge McManus]

Who is going to force this? The rules state 90 overs are to be bowled a day and it doesn't happen, no one cares about the consequences.

This is a fantasy that cutting down a day and a few directives thrown is going to result in brilliant pitches world wide. The MCG was a disgrace for years and nothing was done.

Actually play gets extended for a bit each night and the overs get bowled, or made up down the line. So it does get enforced

 

[Topkent]

s**t what a brilliant suggestion, just make everyone really good at test cricket.

 

[Wedge McManus]

No problem at all with teams playing for a draw if they're ahead in a series. Doesn't mean they're going to get it. The point is that it's much more difficult to achieve the desired outcome of a draw in a five day match. You might as well try to win it. Getting a draw from a four day match would clearly be much easier, and much less of an achievement than preventing the opposition from taking 20 wickets over five days.

Let's just watch the lower tier nations try and bat out a four day draw before coming to conclusions. Even India struggles to do much away from home minus last year. Might be harder than you think. One shade of green on the pitch and subcontinent sides throw their bat away from their bodies remember

 

[PhatBoy]

Four day tests would, by their very nature, create a more competitive format. Instead of teams being able to block everything early on to make hay later, players would have to score quicker to chance a win. This would open up wicket taking opportunities. That said I don't believe Sri Lanka, Windies, Bangladesh etc would have a chance in any format under any conditions.

Sri Lanka literally just last year became the first Asian team to win a series in South Africa and the West Indies towelled up england

 

[Wedge McManus]

Sri Lanka literally just last year became the first Asian team to win a series in South Africa and the West Indies towelled up england

And outside of those flash in a pan performances? Zilch

 

[PhatBoy]

And outside of those flash in a pan performances? Zilch

Well at home Sri Lanka are as hard to beat as anyone, and in their last 5-6 overseas tours West Indies have won tests in the UAE, England, Zimbabwe and India (against Afghanistan, but considering how poorly we play spin that’s actually reasonably noteworthy)

 

[Wedge McManus]

Well at home Sri Lanka are as hard to beat as anyone, and in their last 5-6 overseas tours West Indies have won tests in the UAE, England, Zimbabwe and India (against Afghanistan, but considering how poorly we play spin that’s actually reasonably noteworthy)

Sri Lanka just got beaten at home to NZ. Your second point proves that the windies belong in tier 2 where they are competitive

 

[PhatBoy]

Sri Lanka just got beaten at home to NZ. Your second point proves that the windies belong in tier 2 where they are competitive

Thus robbing them of the chance to beat England, like they did 9 months ago, and to win in England, like they did last time they went.

Great for cricket.

And sorry to break it to you but Sri Lanka drew with NZ at home

 

[Gough]

Going to close this for a while and let people cool off.

 

[Gough]

After a Stalinesque rewriting of history by binning a few post formally declare this thread open again. Without all the bullshit sniping of course.
As for four day Tests I'm not philosophically opposed but I think it would need to be done for the right reason because once that cat is out of the bag there will be no going back and as it stands to cut into the Test match to allow players more time to rest without also looking at T20 workloads is not really a good enough reason.

 

[Van_Dyke]

I don’t mind 4 day tests becoming more of a thing, I think it makes a lot of sense for smaller test nations. But I don’t see the point in mandating it for all tests, the loss of cricket player would be simply too much, given they soften struggle to bowl 90 overs in what becomes 6 1/2 hrs anyway. Don’t see how they’re fitting in 8 more overs test after test

 

[Barlos Crathwaite]

Good call. I agree with the moderator. If the cricket boards who support this initiative only want to free up space for more cricket it would be appalling

 

[Barlos Crathwaite]

Andrew Strauss has come out with a cautionary tale about this idea in newspapers today. He urges the authorities to make it an easy sell to the players and public or it shouldn't be considered

 

[Seedsfan]

Were is the money coming from to achieve all of this? Also, no one seems to be able to counsel India these days, they just do whatever.

The India problem is undoubtedly a big problem.

As to the money if you want to see where that can potentially come from watch ‘Death of a Gentleman’ it’s on Netflix it outlines how India with the support of England and Australia dominate the ICC and receive a disproportionate amount of funds from the ICC development fund that should be going to lesser nations. It also addresses the fact that in many nations their are financial pledges from the government to help grow the game but they are all contingent upon it becoming an Olympic sport

 

[Barlos Crathwaite]

Well in that case someone needs to do something about that disproportionate arrangement.... THERE'S GOT TO BE AN INVESTIGATION!! Lol

 

[Seedsfan]

Well in that case someone needs to do something about that disproportionate arrangement.... THERE'S GOT TO BE AN INVESTIGATION!! Lol

Maybe the ICC should do what’s best for the game and not just what is good for India England and Australia. It would be like giving Collingwood West Coast and Richmond all the equalisation money for bringing in the most revenue

 

[Borisdog]

Pretty simple. Deduct points in the test championship.

Does anyone GAF about some meaningless, manufactured "Test Championship". The points system in use is so open to manipulation that it's likely to be detrimental to Test Cricket, you watch the Indians suddenly playing multiple 2 Test "series" from here on in. It's laughable and meaningless.

 

[quotemokc]

Cheap piss

 

[Barlos Crathwaite]

Does anyone GAF about some meaningless, manufactured "Test Championship". The points system in use is so open to manipulation that it's likely to be detrimental to Test Cricket, you watch the Indians suddenly playing multiple 2 Test "series" from here on in. It's laughable and meaningless.

It'll be fine. Give it a go

 

[Topkent]

Does anyone GAF about some meaningless, manufactured "Test Championship". The points system in use is so open to manipulation that it's likely to be detrimental to Test Cricket, you watch the Indians suddenly playing multiple 2 Test "series" from here on in. It's laughable and meaningless.

Considered no one gives a * about series how do we lose

 

[Leeda]

four days is my last offer.. this is going to be tragic otherwise..

 

[Leeda]

And outside of those flash in a pan performances? Zilch

we only allow previous mortification and terminal hundreds callow sensitivity... woah..