The Cricket Revolution
There was nothing unusual when New Zealand batsman Brendan McCullum took the field at Bangalore’s M. Chinnaswarmy Stadium dressed in his traditional black uniform in April 2008.
From there McCullum quickly broke the record for the highest individual score in a twenty20 match, scoring 158 off 73. This wasn’t unusual either.
NZ Batsman Brendan McCullum during a match for IPL team the Kokata Knight Riders.
What was unusual was that the way the Indian crowd reacted, cheering as he dispatched Indian fast bowler Zaheer Khan to the boundary for four successive deliveries. McCullum’s innings for Kolkata in the inaugural match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) announced that cricket had changed forever.
During its six weeks the IPL played to packed stadiums, in stark contrast to dwindling test match attendances. According to Cricket Australia’s General Manager of Public Affairs, Peter Young, the longer format is in need of an overhaul.
Lalit Modi, the man responsible for the IPL.
“We’re looking at playing test cricket at night because the public tells us that its favourite time for consuming sport and entertainment is in the evening, and they tell us that because 9-5 they’re at work, or at school,” Mr Young said.
One of the problems with playing test cricket at night has been the lack of a suitable ball. The red balls currently used in test cricket are difficult to see under lights.
Cricket Australia has also been at the forefront at the push for a test championship, where teams would compete in a league format over a number of years that would see one team crowned test champions.
“We get criticised a lot by customers, by media, by other commentators for too much cricket which is, in the view of some, meaningless. If we could figure out a championship model it would mean that every game suddenly has context” Mr Young said.
“So an Australian cricket fan watching Australia’s progress towards the finals would start to take an interest in non-Australian cricket because that non-Australian cricket might impact on Australia’s chances.”
Shane Warne takes his 700th test wicket - scenes like this could soon be a thing of the past.
So far, none of this has yet to eventuate, with cricket’s increasingly hectic scheduling coming to dominate international discussion.
In recent times star all-rounders such as England’s Andrew Flintoff and New Zealand’s Jacob Oram have broken down with major injuries, prompting concerns about player burn-out.
Both have since retired from test cricket to focus on one-day cricket and twenty20.
“You won’t see so much player burnout as player management and it will most likely keep the biggest stars of the game out of the lesser tournaments” says cricket coach Steven Broberg.
An injured Andrew Flintoff presents a bat to a fan - injuries have become a major concern for all-rounders.
Australian captain Ricky Ponting was rested from the first half of Australia’s one-day series in England. The loss of big names has raised questions about the place of one-day cricket, which still drives generates most cricket revenue.
Cricket Australia does not agree.
“We have a passionate view that three formats are viable, as long as Twenty20 develops principally as an inter-state or domestic competition. We are passionately convinced that we need to nurture and protect the 50-over format,” Mr Young said.
With the success of the IPL and Australia gearing up to face a West Indian side that has been further weakened by industrial disputes, this view will soon be put to the test.
Map
The following map contains a number of sites pivotal in the rise of Twenty20.
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