Doss
Ass
- Aug 1, 2011
- 75,214
- 112,305
- AFL Club
- Essendon
Part of ICC Chairman Shashank Manohar's comments on the Test championship that is being brought included this rather stark line.
http://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/25944668/test-cricket-dying-shashank-manohar
Is it actually dying though?
I don't think it is. Has it changed? Yes. Is it being compromised in some places (like Australia) by terrible scheduling of first class competitions? Yes.
But, it's still popular with the crowds, in Australia and England at least (granted it does struggle in some other places). It's still popular with the players. And in the place where people have most commonly written Test cricket's obituary, namely the West Indies, you now have a core side who are complete in their commitment to the format, and they have just romped in the regaining of the Wisden Trophy as a result.
I do worry about what this signposts though, in terms of future direction from the top, if they actually believe the form of the game is on its deathbed.
http://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/25944668/test-cricket-dying-shashank-manohar
Is it actually dying though?
I don't think it is. Has it changed? Yes. Is it being compromised in some places (like Australia) by terrible scheduling of first class competitions? Yes.
But, it's still popular with the crowds, in Australia and England at least (granted it does struggle in some other places). It's still popular with the players. And in the place where people have most commonly written Test cricket's obituary, namely the West Indies, you now have a core side who are complete in their commitment to the format, and they have just romped in the regaining of the Wisden Trophy as a result.
I do worry about what this signposts though, in terms of future direction from the top, if they actually believe the form of the game is on its deathbed.