Did you realise that there was a one-day series between England and Australia happening at the moment? Apparently the Australia side have won the series already, with three games to go. I guess that must mean that they are 4-0 up, which would make it a seven match series. Of course I did know all this, but it does seemed to have passed the nation by. If you read some of the articles in the press over the last week or two, it seems to have passed some of the players by too. I have to say that I am pleased. It shows how strong test cricket is in England and Australia. The fact that senior players such as Ponting, Collingwood and now Broad are missing some of the matches to rest, speaks volumes about where their priorities lie. Not one of the players would have conceded their place in the team for a match in whites.
As a county player, I would not let a session of play go by without wanting to know the latest score in the test match. It is what I have been brought up to play. Over the last two weeks, I must be forgiven for not realising there was a one-day game going on. On two occasions, I have found out the result of a game the next morning, having read a report in the paper about something I had no idea was being played.
I do feel that our waning interest in playing or spectating 50 over cricket is directly related to our success in that format over the last ten years. I also can’t help but feel that this is somewhat down to the fact that we never have a 50 over competition that runs throughout the season, and recently, the bulk 50 over county cricket has been finished before the end of May. Our premier, and only 50 over competition has always been played on early season wickets and often with early starts. Elsewhere in the world, 50 over leagues run throughout the whole season and are played on flat wickets where the most aggressive batsmen score most runs and the best bowlers take wickets. Good habits. Come mid-season, when the selectors come to pick their best 50 over cricketers, no county player has played that format for a number of weeks.
How have the English Cricket Board decided to rectify this? Next season the English game will be without a 50 over competition completely.
I do believe that 50 over cricket will eventually evolve into a different format, maybe 40 overs a side, but the next World Cup is definitely 50 overs, and England should give themselves the best chance of success. The ECB have largely ignored the views of the Professional Cricketers Association over the last few months in favor of commercial progress. Judging by the attendance at the Pro40 match in Northampton yesterday, it seems they might have got that wrong too.
