One of the boldest steps taken by
the ICC recently was the approval of day-night tests. I say bold because in
general people are hesitant to change and especially a change to a tradition
which has been followed ever since the inception of the game.
With T20 games becoming extremely
popular amongst fans, there has been a worry whether test cricket still holds a
place in this day and age. Players still feel that Test cricket is the ultimate
judge of their skill. There are fans that still love the ‘purest’ form of the
game over any of the limited versions, but receding crowds in most of the test
venues across the world has added to the fears.
I feel the way the world is
moving on right now, it would be really hard to expect a large crowd in most
venues during test matches. It is really harsh to expect people to skip working
days to come and watch an entire day’s play. We are heading into an era where
we will have more and more fans following the game online rather than come to
the stadium and watch the game. I remember during the 1st test
between Australia and India at Mohali in 2010, when Laxman was performing one
of his epic rear guard actions, the number of viewers following the game on
Cricinfo was too much for the website to handle causing it to crash. Yes it is sad that the crowds at the stadiums
have reduced, but I don’t think the number of followers have. We have an
increasing number of people who keep a tab open on the browser and follow the
game ball by ball live. Maybe that would give us a real indicator how much test
cricket is being followed around the world.
Having said this, I feel the
decision of the ICC to allow day-night tests is a good one. For one, it may add
a new perspective to the game, with the game starting at dusk and then
extending into the night. The way the batsmen cope with the gradually changing
conditions would be really interesting to observe. It can also bring in a lot
more spectators to the game as well; people returning from their offices can go
and watch the game as well. But there are a lot of issues that need to be dealt
with before implementing at the international level. The colour of the ball has
been a major discussion. Pink balls have been tested and seem to be successful
but until we have a large enough sample size we won't be able to pass any judgment.
Another problem they will have to look into is venues where day night tests can
be accommodated. It will be pretty hard to do so in the subcontinent, as the
evenings sets in, dew comes which can provide undue advantage to the batting
side. One way to look at the dew factor is that since it is a test match, both
teams will have to counter the dew while bowling unlike in ODIs where the side
fielding second is at a disadvantage. But the fact is, with the dew in,
spinners will find it hard to grip the ball and pitches in the subcontinent
being heavily favoured for spin bowling, it could totally negate the effectiveness
of a bowler.
With the advent of T20, it is
going to be interesting how the next generations of cricketers are brought up.
Will they adhere to the tradition of test cricket? Or will they just prefer
playing the shortest format? It’s like driving a car, if you just want to drive
a car, you can always opt for an automatic vehicle, but if you truly want to be
a master of it, one has to learn how to shift gears according to the prevailing
conditions.
In my younger days, nothing intrigued
me more than waking up early on a cool wintery morning, sipping a cup of tea to
watch a Boxing Day test live. Maybe the time has come for a change. Maybe it is
time to accept, that it will be hard to attract large crowds for test matches
in the stadiums, but with growing technology we are heading into an age where
we will have more followers online.
About Rohit Ramachandran Poduval
A Classical Leg Spinner, Writer and Software Engineer. Please feel free to add my Google profile to your circles. Connect with me on
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