That was a comment from tonight's T20 cricket.
This is what the noble game of Cricket has come to, the player in question had hit 18 from about 10-12 balls (including a massive six) in setting a target for his team to defend (which they didn't). That's it people to be good/great you have to be a 20/20 *star*, i cringe after watching a lot of the IPL, the interviews before the toss, Talking to players during the game dancing ladies and men plus all the fire works. No people this is not cricket.
When players are now travelling the world doing the t20/ipl/big bash roadshow deciding whether they will represent their countries or pick up another fat cheque from a 2-bit circus of *entertainment* and disrespecting the great game of Test Cricket just to stroke their own egos.
How do we turn this around? Its simple, as fans we should use the market, lets stop watching this, If we don't watch they wont broadcast meaning they wont play it. I would love to see more 4 day county games rather than 4 nights/afternoons of bash and scamper.
The highest level of the game is 5 day Test cricket, the fair battle between bat and bat, the real test of your mental and physical ability.
A Test cap is worth more than any IPL cheque, Big Bash trip and domestic slog put together.
We are all custodians of the game.
I have nothing to add - you've said it all!
ReplyDeleteTest cricket is a fine and noble game. It requires great stamina, mental fitness, patience, skill and wisdom. I think of it as being almost like a game of chess.
The IPL is effectively dumbing it down in the same way as if the Masters were to be made a crazy golf tournament.
That said, I can't blame the players from poorer countries being lured by the massive pay cheques - I would be too. But they're in danger of ruining the very game they play.
Oh, and cricket should only ever be played in cricket whites, not garish multi-coloured strips, but that's an argument for another day...!