The Future of ODI cricket

The recently concluded India Australia series left a lot of questions to be answered . Yes, the series ended with a positive result for us Indians but there are other aspects to be catered to . Out of the maximum possible 14 innings in the 7 match ODI series, we witnessed only Eleven complete innings with rain playing spoilsport in the other three .Out of these 11 we saw scores of 290 plus in 10 innings and scores of 300 plus on 9 occasions. The general opinion was that this due to the new ODI regulations of having only 4 men outside the 30 yard ring . But i like many others tend to differ in this regard. Having placid pitches which give no help to the bowlers means that it is perpetually raining fours and sixes. The story was the same even in Mohali, a ground where traditionally bowlers are supposed to receive pace and bounce from the wicket.

There have been 6 occasions in ODI cricket where more than 700 hundred runs have been scored in a match ,and out of those 6 ,we witnessed 3 instances this very series. Statistics which point out to the fact that this has become such a batsman friendly game with small boundaries adding to the woes of the bowlers. At one point it felt that the bowlers were there just to make up the numbers and it was Batsmen vs Batsmen affair altogether. Even giving the bowlers the leverage to bowl 2 bouncers in an over has not made much of an impact as far as cricket in India is concerned.

But the India vs Australia series was not the only ongoing one day series in the recent past. If we look at the Bangladesh Vs New Zealand one day series or the more competitive Pakistan vs South Africa Series in UAE , they both have one thing in common, the shortage of runs. Bangladesh defended scores of around 250 twice in two matches whereas targets of around 200 were not chased down by both Pakistan and South Africa in their opening two encounters.So,i guess the ICC’s regulations are not to blame for the mayhem we saw in India. The difference comes in the preparation of the pitches.Pitches in the UAE always have something in them for the batsmen and the bowlers alike and the supreme bowling attack of both Pakistan and South Africa meant that runs have been more or less curtailed.  

Yes, the crowd loves to see big hitting and balls being hit out the park , but in all fairness the India Australia ODI series was a bit difficult to digest . Dhoni said in the 6th one day’s post match presentation, and i quote "I don't know where it ( ODI cricket) is going. Is it good in the long run that we are seeing - for seven hours - only fours and sixes?" I completely agree with the man , off late he has become quite a statesman , picking and choosing his words very wisely and he got this one absolutely spot on , like most other things.   

A friend of mine tweeted that  “ Fielders have become spectators and spectators have become fielders in this series” . I think it’s not just this series, this was true even in the recently concluded ICC champions trophy. Even there we saw dry and flat wickets which gave the batsmen the opportunity to hit through the line and thereby post totals in excess of 300 very easily. The appalling thing was that the champions trophy was held in England, where we are not accustomed to seeing such pitches .Even though Britain experienced a dry monsoon by their standards but i guess the tracks were produced keeping in mind the Entertainment factor for the crowd and the public at home. I don’t think this strategy would go very far as people are bound to get bored by such redundant cricketing action, leading to a lack in viewership and general interest altogether.



There has to be an equal competition between the bat and the ball to engage the public over a long period of time. Leaving the Entertainment factor and ODI’s aside , speaking from pure cricketing standards, after playing for so long on such pitches it would be difficult for the Indians to get themselves accustomed to other pitches quickly. Seeing that India’s next overseas series is against south Africa , they really need to get themselves out of this rut of the IPL and flat tracks and concentrate more on seaming and bouncing tracks. The real test for the Sharmas and the Dhawans starts now, facing the likes of styen and morkel in their own backyard is no easy task. Experts, Critics and Fans all acknowledge the fact that touring South Africa is a big challenge and doing well there , an even bigger one. With two test matches and 3 one day matches scheduled , it would be interesting to watch whether our men in blue can deliver the goods because at this point it really looks unlikely.