ISSN: 1391 - 0531
Sunday April 27, 2008
Vol. 42 - No 48
Sports

Vaas smells death of Test

Twenty-20 format will bring about many changes to the game

By Chaminda Vaas

As I write from India, I am very excited to be part of the latest experiment in cricket, the Indian Premier League (IPL), with its Twenty-20 tournament scattered around India. I am here playing for the Deccan Chargers, based in Hyderabad.

Although the Twenty-20 game was thought of some time ago, this tournament has its own attractions apart from the still new Twenty-20 format: the franchised teams with players from many countries in the same team, a league format and the general atmosphere of being made for television.

The IPL has been well organized, probably because it is being run as a commercial venture. It has been planned and implemented well. The organizers have obviously spent an enormous amount of money to get it off the ground and they are not sparing any expenses in ensuring that it runs smoothly.

Playing in the IPL has its rewards. For example, it has given me the opportunity to play alongside Adam Gilchrist, Andrew Symonds, V.V.S. Laxman and Shahid Afridi on a regular basis. I will also play against the best players in the world during a six week period, a chance we would otherwise get only in the World Cup once in four years.

As far what the teams do, they are no different from what an international team would do. Within a few weeks of being here, there is a good team spirit developing among us. We have team discussions where we share our thoughts and plan strategies for the game ahead. And the international players will bring insights about colleagues from their own countries who are now playing in rival teams.

The IPL also affords us another unique experience-playing your own countrymen on a competitive basis. I will be playing against Sanath, Mahela, Kumar, Murali and others with whom I have been teammates for years-and that is also quite a challenging task!But I must confess though that as a bowler, you feel hard done by in this form of the game. It has been devised with the batsmen in mind, possibly because crowds want to see exciting stroke play and high scores being chased down.

The batting team has all ten wickets at its disposal for twenty overs but bowlers are restricted to four overs each. Even the boundary lines have been shortened to about 65 metres. Therefore, the margin for error as a bowler is minimal.

The bowler’s role in Twenty-20 is a very demanding one. He has to bowl twenty four deliveries knowing that the batsman will attack him from the outset. And just one bad over can make the difference between winning and losing because more than twenty runs can easily be scored. After so many Twenty-20 games, it is still difficult to predict what a ‘good’ score is in this from of the game. Earlier, in the Twenty-20 World Cup in South Africa it was thought that 200 runs in twenty overs would be a very good score but in the IPL some 200 plus scores are being chased down comfortably!

I am sure that with time, the Twenty-20 format will bring about many changes to the game. I believe that in the future, players specializing in Twenty-20 will emerge, just as we now have some batsmen who are preferred for one day internationals. For example, I believe Yusuf Pathan from India would make a very good Twenty-20 cricketer.

Another change that players will have to recognize is that they would have to change their attitude towards each format of the game. At present, we alternate between test cricket and one day internationals and even then we have to change our frame of mind to suit the shorter or longer version of the game.

With the Twenty-20 format becoming more popular, players will have to switch between test matches, one day internationals and Twenty-20s. As you may have seen from some of the shots being played in the IPL, players will have to not only change the way they approach the game, they will have to alter their techniques, batting styles and bowling strategies. And, with the likelihood of Twenty-20 becoming the most popular format of the game, only those who are able to adapt will survive.

I do feel that test cricket will eventually suffer as a result of the Twenty-20 format. As this version of the game which is all over in a matter of three hours becomes popular, people will be reluctant to spend six hours a day for five days watching test cricket. If that happens, I for one will be sad. And I know most current test players share my view.

It is also important for the International Cricket Council (ICC) to ensure that the tournaments such as the IPL do not drain key players away from their countries. The IPL is a fantastic prospect for cricketers to raise their standard of living but hopeflly that will not happen at the expense of players abandoning their countries because of big money.

For young Indian cricketers of course, this is a great opportunity. Their youngsters are getting the chance to play with the greatest and the best in the game on a regular basis. When that happens, the standard of Indian cricket can only improve and I am sure we will see the results in the near future.

This tournament itself, the first of its kind, is still in its early stages. While I am delighted to be part of the first IPL experience, my team hasn’t exactly been doing well. We have lost of our first three matches to the Kolkata Knight Riders, Delhi Daredevils and rather narrowly to the Rajasthan Royals. But there are eleven games more to be played and we are looking at reversing our fortunes.I have as my team mates Chamara Silva and Nuwan Zoysa but they haven’t been able to get a game as only four overseas players are allowed per playing XI-even Herschelle Gibbs hasn’t got a game until now!

All that may change in the next few weeks and the Deccan Chargers are hoping to make it to the semi-finals in late May. But this being Twenty-20, no one is making any predictions yet!

 
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