Is test cricket dead ?

Spoiler:

So 300 with a loss of 3-4 wickets + some thrown away at the end is now an average score for a 1 dayer. (If you play at the Bullring make that 400)
Which would make sense if 150 is average for a T20.
So test match cricket is dead because with a good opponent you only score 300 in a day.

Let's discuss.

I love test cricket, it's the pure form of the game. It's where if the pitch is prepared without interference produces a fair contest between bat and ball over 5 days and for the most part provides a result. Those that don't provide a result are either weather effected or the best games you have ever seen.

I enjoy 1 dayers because its a balance between flair and strategy. Where with the right pitch conditions you have to pick when you big hit and go for runs, when you conserve wickets and when you go all out to maximise your score.

I enjoy T20 because it's mindless fun. Bat dominates the ball on a prepared flat track and It's a fun night out watching the game I love for the whole family.

The common thread across all forms of the game is curation or wicket preparation. If we are to see all 3 forms of the game at their best we need to prepare wickets accordingly and not to the requests of the host nation. It's not all about runs. A balance of runs and wickets provides a much better spectacle than runs alone. Nor does the reverse apply where dust bowls are produced to provide a result in a little over 2 days in a test match.

Interestingly a pitch can be deemed dangerous due to uneven bounce from seamers, but not spinners, and there is no provision to deem a pitch unsuitable because it offers bowlers nothing.

If we get the curation of wickets right to provide a spectacle and not runs then all 3 forms of the game can flourish.

The pitch for the WACA test was disgusting. I'd hate to be a quick in modern cricket.

I enjoy the 5 day test still think its the best form but we have missed out on so much cricket because of games ending on the third day or what not. I saw it on twitter the amount of time missed. I cant remember it off the top of my head. I like the big bash but I mainly only watch the heat play if I do.

Your Name wrote:

Spoiler:

If we get the curation of wickets right to provide a spectacle and not runs then all 3 forms of the game can flourish.

I could not agree with you more. The last two ODI were more about how many runs can a side score in 50 overs than the contest of bowler and batsman.
One day cricket will not draw crowds if every game has 300 runs and minimal wickets taken.

It will also result in Australia being unable to win many games in other countries. One of the reasons we were so successful was the variation in pitches in Australia. The WACA, GABBA and SCG were iconic wickets in Australia due to their differences.

Random wrote:Done it.

SI was meant to do it.

SI is a lazy phuck.

SI wrote:Just with the lack of individual sports threads, we have been working through it No Worries, will get there.

It's not like I asked you to post a picture. How hard could it have been.

User Name wrote:

I could not agree with you more. The last two ODI were more about how many runs can a side score in 50 overs than the contest of bowler and batsman.
One day cricket will not draw crowds if every game has 300 runs and minimal wickets taken.

It will also result in Australia being unable to win many games in other countries. One of the reasons we were so successful was the variation in pitches in Australia. The WACA, GABBA and SCG were iconic wickets in Australia due to their differences.

A big part is the drop in pitches they use everywhere. The traditional grounds with traditional pitch squares are gone because they are multi purpose venues. Growing up playing league there were certain grounds which had grass pitches in the middle that you knew were gonna take skin off and if a scrum packed on there was no grip with studs and refs would move it so it didn't collapse. Now our professional players are too soft to play on cricket pitches.

A mate of mine reasons that every 5 overs of one day cricket the bowling team should be allowed 20 seconds of supervised ball tampering to get it to swing more

He thinks it should be every 10 overs in tests cricket.

He is a bit out there with his thoughts but after watching two one dayers where the bowlers have no chance I am starting to agree with him.

Sashamaloo wrote:A mate of mine reasons that every 5 overs of one day cricket the bowling team should be allowed 20 seconds of supervised ball tampering to get it to swing more

He thinks it should be every 10 overs in tests cricket.

He is a bit out there with his thoughts but after watching two one dayers where the bowlers have no chance I am starting to agree with him.

The commentators mentioned that the white ball does have a flat seam compared to the red ball. Maybe they need to fix the ball if they insist on flat pitches.

Or ball tampering would work.

Sashamaloo wrote:A mate of mine reasons that every 5 overs of one day cricket the bowling team should be allowed 20 seconds of supervised ball tampering to get it to swing more

He thinks it should be every 10 overs in tests cricket.

He is a bit out there with his thoughts but after watching two one dayers where the bowlers have no chance I am starting to agree with him.

I heard something similar along the lines of make it legal, but if you fuck the ball up and it becomes a bit of soap that's your problem, you can't swap it