Cricket went through tough times in the late seventies and early eighties with many test matches petering out to draws. The introduction of the 1 day game generated new interest in cricket and today we see a similar surge in popularity with the introduction on an even shorter version of the game.
Exciting Cricket
The new version of the game takes around 3 hours to complete. The shorter time is more in line with other popular sports than the 1 day or 5 day versions of cricket. The big hits and aggressive stroke play from the batsmen also make for an exciting spectacle and unless the weather intervenes spectators are guaranteed a result. The excitement and interest of Twenty20 cricket is similar to what was seen when international 1 day cricket made it appearance in the late seventies.
New Players and Cricket Skills
The traditional stroke play and mindset of a cricket batsman was more in line with not getting out than scoring runs. In Twenty20 cricket the guaranteed result means there is no option for a draw and runs are needed to win. The new batsmen are rated on their ability to score quickly rather than total runs. Likewise bowlers have had to change the way they bowl as now taking wickets is less of a priority than restricting runs. The result has been the development of new strokes from batsmen, such as the reverse pull, and more variation from bowlers with regards to length and speed. This has led to players being selected only for this version of the game. So called higher honours of test match cricket are not offered to these specialist players as their skill sets are not suited to the longer version.
Improvement or Detriment for Cricket
The new batting and bowling skills are being transferred to the longer versions of the game. Run rates in test matches are higher and the scores achieved in 1 day games have also increased. This is coupled with the increase of wickets taken in test match sessions and one day games. The result seems to be that more 5 day test matches are being completed as opposed to being drawn and more 1 day teams are being bowled out within the allocated 50 overs.
The Rise in Popularity of Test Cricket
While the interest in Twenty 20 cricket is huge there has been an unexpected increase in the popularity of test cricket. The traditional Ashes series between England and Australia, while always being popular in those countries, now has massive global interest. Other test series have also seen increased attendances with more value placed on test victories by fans.
The victim of this change in popularity seems to be the 1 day game. Its position as something in-between Twenty20 and test match cricket means that it fails to deliver at both ends of the cricketing spectrum. This is a major concern to New Zealand Cricket who having secured the rights to host the 2016 1 day cricket world cup, now face an uphill battle to promote a tournament that is falling in popularity.
The Future of Twenty20 Cricket
As with most new games or variations of a game there is huge interest from fans and sponsors. The popularity of Twenty20 cricket is similar to the popularity of Sevens Rugby when this was first introduced. However over time the novelty wears off. Already we have seen one major Twenty20 league in India disappear, leaving players unpaid, and fans returning to test match cricket. With the introduction on a world series of sevens rugby the popularity of the games fell as fans were over exposed. Similarly with Twenty20 cricket the large number of games and tournaments is over exposing fans.
While Twenty20 cricket will never go away it may take on a life of its own to the side of traditional cricket. Specialist Twerny20 players, who were never in line for test match cricket ,will have a career in the shorter version alongside retired international veterans. The game itself will probably be relegated to a novelty but still a popular version with but no great international credibility.
Debra DeLorenzo - Debra DeLorenzo is a fully qualified bathroom and kitchen designer (CKD/CBDNZ) and has been in the design industry since 1996. She has won ...
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