Volume of runs makes Test cricket boring
Ok, it’s high time I had a rant, having abstained for, oh, not very long…
*Rant commences*
In Trinidad, West Indies are attempting to play out a draw and win their first series since beating Bangladesh in 2004. The maxim that the best form of defence is attack clearly does not apply, as West Indies selected 7 batsmen and only 3 front-line bowlers with no spinner. The majority of the bowling has been entrusted to the part-time bowlers presumably in an attempt to prolong the England innings for as long as possible.
Due to the slow nature of the pitch, England have found it difficult to score quickly, with West Indies bowling defensive lines to defensive fields, and have been steadily accumulating runs as best they can. We shall see when they bowl how the pitch really plays – it has yet to be properly tested.
Meanwhile, in Durban, the 2nd test between South Africa and Australia pulsated it’s way through the second day as first the South African bowlers took charge only to see Australia wrest back the iniative in the field. However, this series currently seems to be the exception in Test cricket. Before its abandonment for tragic, non-cricketing reasons, the series between Pakistan and Sri Lanka was proving to be just as biased towards the bat as that in the Caribbean.
So far in 2009, so many runs have been scored, that the average per wicket is 2nd on the all time list, and that particular year had only one test match.
It is high time that something is done to level the playing field between bat and ball. Runs scored each year are increasing, and making average batsmen look good, good batsmen great. Pitches need to give encouragement to both batsman and bowler, seam and spin, rather than the bland featherbeds which seem to be designed to last 15 days not least 5. The ICC should take responsibility for ensuring that pitches are of an appropriate quality – i.e. not falling apart at the beginning of a test match, as in Jamaica 1998, but also that they are not so flat that there is little chance of teams taking 20 wickets.
Groundsmen the world over would soon be changing their approach if they knew that repeated transgressions would lead to their ground being denied the privelege of international matches. A system of 3-strikes and you’re out would be reasonable, with the panel of match referees working together to ensure a consistent method of grading and reporting pitches.
We are used to seeing the pitch inspectors when too many wickets are deemed to be falling during a match, so why not apply the same if not enough wickets are taken as a direct result of the pitch?
Over-rates could be tackled by stipulating that a days play will feature a minimum of 17 overs per hour. This should not be averaged out over a whole days play, so that a team bowling 18 in the 1st hour cannot get away with 16 in the next. Penalties of runs, based on the batting teams scoring rate, would be applied. This would prevent the tactics applied by West Indies, ensuring that the minimum overs only were bowled by changing the field after each delivery, consulting half the team in the process.
The players need to be made forcefully aware that they are in the business of entertainment. If Test cricket is to be protected, as people keep telling us that it does in the face of Twenty20, then the ICC need as a priority to ensure that it is….you’ve guessed it, entertaining. This means an even contest between bat and ball, with batsmen confident enough to play their shots, interspersed with spells of hostile pace bowling, or a spin bowler tormenting his victims, trying to outfox them.
Either way, something needs to be done, because we’re all starting to get bored.
*Rant Ends*
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