T20 cricket is a travesty - Make it happen less often

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

I was watching Premier League football the other night - and during half time switched to T20 cricket. For our purposes, it could be any T20 game.

It was as if the world had stopped. Bowlers walking slowly to their mark, bowl a ball, and then go back to their mark slowly again - taking 5 minutes to finish 6 balls. If a ball is hit far, infinite wait. There are numerous breaks - time between overs, field changes, player conferences, water breaks, 'strategic time outs', retrieving the ball from boundary and what not. If it was meant to be a faster form of the game, I failed to notice.

It was also dreadfully monotonous. The same old slow cutters, slow bouncers, scoops and inside out shots I remember from the last T20 game I saw some days ago, and the one before that, and the one before that.

Even when the finish was tight and there was a super over, There was no drama. One team did better than the other over 6 balls of slogging. They shook hands. Switch to endless graphs and stats with little meaning - before the next game starting in an hour.

The next day, I couldn't even recall who played whom - it was just 3 letter acronyms interchangeable from one league to another.

Cricket was invented as an ultimate examination of a person's technique, patience and ultimately character. That game was really not cricket.

Test cricket is cricket.

The slower the game is, the more the pauses, the more discussions, the field changes, the deliveries landing on the same spot over after over and batsman leaving them all, over 5 days, that is what the game was invented for. A century or a 5 wicket haul - you know the person is special.

Like any sport in its best form, test cricket is what makes cricket, cricket.

Back to T20. Yes I know all the arguments for T20 cricket. I also know it is here to stay. I know I should find it in my heart to say there is a place for both. And I will.

I am no purist. I like watching it as I would like watching anything where a bat hits the ball. I stop to watch kids play on the streets. It is a bit easier when there is some form of personal stakes - like the various acronyms playing are from my country.

Plus I know we need T20 - it has more fans and they are fickle - if they don't get T20, they will switch to football. Then all the money will disappear.

Here is my solution:

Abolish T20 internationals. Just keep T20 in leagues. If you can reduce it to T10s, the better - atleast it will lay a better claim to be fast. The 100 is a good start - it cuts down the overs more. T20 fans will be none the wiser. They may even be on their ipads and miss the end.

Give all that leftover space to more Test cricket - make good pitches so most games are result oriented.

 

[shah_1]

Abolish T20 internationals

Most boards make a lot of money from these series so that is not an option.

Your opinion is right on Test cricket about the quality but it doesn't fit in most people lifestyle in these days unless it is on weekend. There is no time to watch whole day of cricket while you are working, studying or spending leisure time outdoor with friends or addiction of cell phones.

T20 fits in our lifestyle. Starts around 7:00pm after coming from office/school/colleges

 

[Ab Fan]

Excellent thread.

T20 cricket is not real cricket, whether it is T20 internationals or WT20 tournament or any T20 league. This is not the game cricket is meant for. Cricket deserves more space and time for Test cricket and even for 50 overs World Cup.

T20 format has literally no value because at the first place, nobody takes it seriously. Even I don't understand what is the point of playing WT20 every year or two. Over a decade, it happens like six times lol. If something is of great value, it must not happen so frequently.

A cricketers legacy is defined by Test Cricket and ODI cricket( World Cup, which happens once in four years) and that is something which is of highest value.

I understand that T20 format has just so much of money and nobody is gonna miss out on cashing them out. Hence, abolish T20 internationals, <B>one must understand winning T20 internationals don't make you a great cricket nation</B>.

Just play Cricket leagues for entertainment and as a source for making money and being financially strong but at the same time, every countries boards should set certain restrictions on that also so that players aren't able to prioritize cricket leagues over internationals.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

Most boards make a lot of money from these series so that is not an option.

Your opinion is right on Test cricket about the quality but it doesn't fit in most people lifestyle in these days unless it is on weekend. There is no time to watch whole day of cricket while you are working, studying or spending leisure time outdoor with friends or addiction of cell phones.

T20 fits in our lifestyle. Starts around 7:00pm after coming from office/school/colleges

I understand the lifestyle argument - just like rapid chess fits viewing better than real chess. Or rapid golf. or Futsal instead of football. Or many other short forms of real sport.

I just don't know if finding short cuts to money through T20Is are the solution - or that time is better spent on making test cricket better. For example, expand number of teams, mandate pitch indices, better stadia, better balls, better bats, better coverage, day-night tests, better ranking system, neutral venues, better championships, better FTP, better domestic long form coverage, better grass roots and 100 other things.

First ODIs and then T20s have robbed test cricket of when it was poised to take off - just when TV and then internet came into our lives.

 

[Rana]

A day wasted on a T20 international could be utilised for a ODI, meaningful runs and Wickets.

Kind of agree. I guess the T20 leagues will be left to recruit its players through ODI, Tests and performances based in other leagues.

 

[WhenSultansBowled]

Unfortunately, T20 league$ are here to $tay. It's always been about Benjamin$ anways!

 

[ElRaja]

doesn't really matter, t20i games occupy a small part of the international calendar, there are rarely more than 10 bilateral games a year, easy enough to ignore.

you increase test cricket and you'll only increase the amount of top players abandoning test cricket. you dont have to have a lot of tests to make them important, the wtc did well to give all tests context.

i personally have gotten used to the fact that t20 cricket is gonna be the main economic engine of the sport, i just dont really watch it, which is ok by me given as ive gotten older ive got less time to watch cricket anyway.

3 or 4 (minimum 3 tests) series would be ideal for me. get rid of odis, pbly the most *******ised format of the sport, and a real waste of time at nearly a whole day long.

 

[Titan24]

This year T20s have minimized ODIs in anticipation of the World T20. I have no issues with T20 cricket as far as its not the sole white ball format on the tour. Too many 2 match test series, no ODIs and 3 match T20 series isnt the right combination I think.

You dont have to minimize other forms of cricket in anticipation for World T20 which is gonna happen every two years anyways. Yes there are two consecutive World T20 that were scheduled rather than replacing one with champions trophy or something else but that shouldn’t have impact on other formats of the game.

 

[JattMaula]

I agree about t20 internationals. Almost no team takes it seriously beyond the WC year. Drop it and jamodis altogether. Make 5 test a tour compulsory. Watch cricket remain the sport it was a century ago.

Boom.



Solved.

 

[HappyWarsFan]

I am so sick sick of these ******** 3 T20 series and 2 tests. Please just get back to 3 tests and 5 ODIs tours.

 

[Pakhs]

The only reason why T20 cricket is bad for the game because it has made test cricket almost irrelevant and only the BIG 3 make any effort in that format while the rest of the board are busy arranging T20s to make much needed money.

 

[Syed1]

Cricket is a dying sport anyway. English and Aussie youth do not play it seriously anymore. Even in Pakistan I've seen a marked decline in its popularity since my younger days in the 90s. This is also exhibited by the team's performance. In the 80s-90s we were always near the top of the rankings or competitive home and away, now we get beaten even on home grounds.

I fear by 2050 cricket would only be played competitively in South Asia and mostly by India. Football/soccer is gaining popularity amongst the youngsters in Pakistan. Sadly the management and development of the sport is SOOOOOOOOO bad that even if we fix things today it will take decades for us to assemble a side that is atleast competitive in Asia.


The decline of cricket sucks for us because it is the only sport where we are reasonably competitive at the international level

 

[shah_1]

I agree about t20 internationals. Almost no team takes it seriously beyond the WC year. Drop it and jamodis altogether. Make 5 test a tour compulsory. Watch cricket remain the sport it was a century ago.

Boom.



Solved.

Still T20 international matches involving India have more viewers than test matches. It is a bitter truth

 

[JattMaula]

Still T20 international matches involving India have more viewers than test matches. It is a bitter truth

Money don't matter, viewership don't matter and most of all fan preference doesn't matter. We don't want any change. Cricket should remain an English upper class sport.

Truth is subjective nowadays. I reject your truth. My opinion is more important than truth. #fakenews

 

[shah_1]

Money don't matter, viewership don't matter and most of all fan preference doesn't matter. We don't want any change. Cricket should remain an English upper class sport.

Truth is subjective nowadays. I reject your truth. My opinion is more important than truth. #fakenews

Sorry couldn't detect the sarcasm

Cricket is not dying but test cricket is dying.

 

[Hasan123]

T20 cricket is about fun and way of getting people interested in cricket. I wouldn't look at getting rid of it. Would probably just have T20 world cups as the only T20s played at international level as there is enough T20 leagues played around the world.

 

[silentkiller187]

fact of the matter is t20 is here to stay whether we like it or not, especially if covid carries on, i think going forward teams will fly in for a quick t20 series then fly back out, the days of the long tour may be over for good.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

The only reason why T20 cricket is bad for the game because it has made test cricket almost irrelevant and only the BIG 3 make any effort in that format while the rest of the board are busy arranging T20s to make much needed money.

Did I even mention the pandering, shallow, insights-less commentary, filled with fake enthusiasm and supported by meaningless stats made to appear intelligent?

There is much wrong with test cricket but it is not dying. I am yet to see any stats to support it. It is however impacted highly by lack of enthusiasm and professional support from easy-money-grabbing boards who do not want to spread the game because they are afraid to lose power

T20 will stay and grow - but it has no consequence - which is the reason why cricket will die - not test cricket.

 

[Pakhs]

Did I even mention the pandering, shallow, insights-less commentary, filled with fake enthusiasm and supported by meaningless stats made to appear intelligent?

There is much wrong with test cricket but it is not dying. I am yet to see any stats to support it. It is however impacted highly by lack of enthusiasm and professional support from easy-money-grabbing boards who do not want to spread the game because they are afraid to lose power

T20 will stay and grow - but it has no consequence - which is the reason why cricket will die - not test cricket.

you are wrong - the younger kids growing up will see T20 cricket as the pinnacle simply because they will see less and less test cricket. Look at most boards outside of BIG 3 their big stars are mostly T20 format players. Look at Gayle who gave up test cricket first despite being hugely successful at playing the long version, Look at Afridi, Amir the list goes on.

 

[silentkiller187]

The problem is t20 is the format where the gulf between the best sides and the weak sides is not that great, for example a lot of afghan players have been fast tracked and performed in t20 leagues, it has given them exposure, similarly with Nepal (lammichanne) and USA (Khan). The icc has realized this is the format to push as it will encourage more participation, leading to ultimately higher revenue streams. Test cricket costs too much money and is limited to 9 / 10 sides, most associate teams would not even last 3 days against the main cricketing nations., for the game to grow t20 will become the main product i am afraid.

 

[shamaan]

T20 is for fun and enjoyment and alot of new generation prefer to watch t20 as they can go go work and fit in a t20 match on the same day also the best times can be defeated in t20s were tests the the best sides will win majority of the time.thiers also alot of money in t20s were players can make a living

 

[ShoonyaSifar]

T20s are not going away just because the test purists want it. The format has established itself through innovative packaging and it perfectly meets the demands from its fanbase including majority who follow only T20s and nothing else.

Like it or not, the format is keeping Tests alive in most cricket playing countries. Plus the fact that the multifold jump in revenues due to T20s provides a decent living for 100s of lesser know cricketers across countries

 

[Shazzam]

The slower the game is, the more the pauses, the more discussions, the field changes, the deliveries landing on the same spot over after over and batsman leaving them all, over 5 days, that is what the game was invented for. A century or a 5 wicket haul - you know the person is special.

This sounds more like a waste of time to me. Why should anyone watch batsmen avoiding the ball not scoring runs. While watching bowlers bowl the same ball over and over again. What people want is action. They don’t wanna see players using a international match to practice defense. Now a days people got much more entertainment than they did in the past. Test cricket is competing with other forms of entertainment not just Twenty20. Which is why its not as profitable as Twenty20.

Serious question do any if you Cricket purist actually watch 5 whole days?

 

[JattMaula]

This sounds more like a waste of time to me. Why should anyone watch batsmen avoiding the ball not scoring runs. While watching bowlers bowl the same ball over and over again. What people want is action. They don’t wanna see players using a international match to practice defense. Now a days people got much more entertainment than they did in the past. Test cricket is competing with other forms of entertainment not just Twenty20. Which is why its not as profitable as Twenty20.

Serious question do any if you Cricket purist actually watch 5 whole days?

Not a purist but drawn out event has its own attraction. Just think of it like 'edging'. Not possible for many but some do enjoy it.

 

[ahmadharis1]

"Get rid of T20 internationals because I don't like it"

 

[Shaka81]

I was watching Premier League football the other night - and during half time switched to T20 cricket. For our purposes, it could be any T20 game.

It was as if the world had stopped. Bowlers walking slowly to their mark, bowl a ball, and then go back to their mark slowly again - taking 5 minutes to finish 6 balls. If a ball is hit far, infinite wait. There are numerous breaks - time between overs, field changes, player conferences, water breaks, 'strategic time outs', retrieving the ball from boundary and what not. If it was meant to be a faster form of the game, I failed to notice.

It was also dreadfully monotonous. The same old slow cutters, slow bouncers, scoops and inside out shots I remember from the last T20 game I saw some days ago, and the one before that, and the one before that.

Even when the finish was tight and there was a super over, There was no drama. One team did better than the other over 6 balls of slogging. They shook hands. Switch to endless graphs and stats with little meaning - before the next game starting in an hour.

The next day, I couldn't even recall who played whom - it was just 3 letter acronyms interchangeable from one league to another.

Cricket was invented as an ultimate examination of a person's technique, patience and ultimately character. That game was really not cricket.

Test cricket is cricket.

The slower the game is, the more the pauses, the more discussions, the field changes, the deliveries landing on the same spot over after over and batsman leaving them all, over 5 days, that is what the game was invented for. A century or a 5 wicket haul - you know the person is special.

Like any sport in its best form, test cricket is what makes cricket, cricket.

Back to T20. Yes I know all the arguments for T20 cricket. I also know it is here to stay. I know I should find it in my heart to say there is a place for both. And I will.

I am no purist. I like watching it as I would like watching anything where a bat hits the ball. I stop to watch kids play on the streets. It is a bit easier when there is some form of personal stakes - like the various acronyms playing are from my country.

Plus I know we need T20 - it has more fans and they are fickle - if they don't get T20, they will switch to football. Then all the money will disappear.

Here is my solution:

Abolish T20 internationals. Just keep T20 in leagues. If you can reduce it to T10s, the better - atleast it will lay a better claim to be fast. The 100 is a good start - it cuts down the overs more. T20 fans will be none the wiser. They may even be on their ipads and miss the end.

Give all that leftover space to more Test cricket - make good pitches so most games are result oriented.

Interesting argument.... Using the same logic I can't stand the English Premier League, so abolish it. I know other people watch it and enjoy it. I know it generates more money than other leagues and international football but I don't like it. It's just expensive players who don't really care about the city their club represents. Also players change all the time so I don't like it and it should be abolished. They should only play local football and international football. It's not like EPL fans would notice as they'll be too busy on Twitter sending memes to each other.

Just for the record I don't care about English football but don't actually want to see it abolished. Similarly just because you don't like T20 cricket doesn't mean that others aren't enjoying it. Your tastes don't overrule others. I never watch Test cricket because I have a life and a job so don't have time to waste watching the same ball over and over again. The bowler bowls outside the off stump and the batsman let's it pass through. Then the endless rambling of commentators who talk about anything other than the boredom on the pitch.

I'll keep my T20 cricket and I'm sure the players, coaches and administrators would agree. It generates income that pays all their salaries while also allowing them to play in front of big crowds. You can keep your Test cricket and discussions about crochets and cakes.... exciting!!!

 

[aloo paratha]

I was thinking about this. I hate the fact that we take a month off international cricket to play the PSL.

 

[aloo paratha]

I'm fine with the Blast or BBL, because international cricket doesn't really get disturbed by it.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

Interesting argument.... Using the same logic I can't stand the English Premier League, so abolish it. I know other people watch it and enjoy it. I know it generates more money than other leagues and international football but I don't like it. It's just expensive players who don't really care about the city their club represents. Also players change all the time so I don't like it and it should be abolished. They should only play local football and international football. It's not like EPL fans would notice as they'll be too busy on Twitter sending memes to each other.

Just for the record I don't care about English football but don't actually want to see it abolished. Similarly just because you don't like T20 cricket doesn't mean that others aren't enjoying it. Your tastes don't overrule others. I never watch Test cricket because I have a life and a job so don't have time to waste watching the same ball over and over again. The bowler bowls outside the off stump and the batsman let's it pass through. Then the endless rambling of commentators who talk about anything other than the boredom on the pitch.

I'll keep my T20 cricket and I'm sure the players, coaches and administrators would agree. It generates income that pays all their salaries while also allowing them to play in front of big crowds. You can keep your Test cricket and discussions about crochets and cakes.... exciting!!!

Hmmm...I really didn't make a play for English Premier League - sort of like missing the point altogether. A bit of rant that.

Football format doesn't change from game to game.

I have no issues with your point about crotchets and cakes - because that's how I suppose you look at test cricket. For the likes of you, I'd say bring on more 3-letter acronym teams.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

This sounds more like a waste of time to me. Why should anyone watch batsmen avoiding the ball not scoring runs. While watching bowlers bowl the same ball over and over again. What people want is action. They don’t wanna see players using a international match to practice defense. Now a days people got much more entertainment than they did in the past. Test cricket is competing with other forms of entertainment not just Twenty20. Which is why its not as profitable as Twenty20.

Serious question do any if you Cricket purist actually watch 5 whole days?

I doubt many watch the entire 5 days of test cricket. People watch the entire T20 and majority of a one-day game for sure.

I just don't think test cricket has been thought through for the modern consumer. It's living in the old age when people weren't so distracted by a thousand things. I won't consider the length of a test match - 5 days - is necessarily the barrier - because all other things haven't changed - including time when it starts and ends, the pitches, the marketing, the stadiums, the number of countries playing it, the FTP, the points system, the balls, the technology, the coverage and many other things.

It hasn't been paid enough attention because ODI and then T20s have taken all the time of the boards. I am pretty sure a hundred or a T10 or caged cricket, or 6-a-side or something else will come along with more slogging and the new age viewers will lap it up. I fear for it's future because these fans are very fickle.

 

[Shaka81]

Hmmm...I really didn't make a play for English Premier League - sort of like missing the point altogether. A bit of rant that.

Football format doesn't change from game to game.

I have no issues with your point about crotchets and cakes - because that's how I suppose you look at test cricket. For the likes of you, I'd say bring on more 3-letter acronym teams.

My comparison with the EPL and lower league football is valid. Have you ever watched lower league football? I'd invite you to watch a Scottish League 2 game and tell me that is the same form of the game as the average EPL game. Yet fans of lower league games often view their games as a more pure form of the game uncorrupted by money and more traditional. You have a choice watch whichever version you find entertaining but if a fan of a lower league team started demanding the abolition of the more popular game quite rightly t they would be criticised. Yet in cricket it's seen as fair game to attack T20 fans for liking a format of the game that attracts more crowds, finance and let's be honest more entertainment. It's just a form of snobbery from Test cricket fans scared that the form of the game they enjoy is not actually that popular.

Sorry if that feels like another rant but I'm fed up with being looked down on for preferring T20 cricket as though it makes me a simpleton for wanting to be entertained.

 

[Cric_lover4487]

I was obsessed with cricket as a child and in my teenage years. I followed Indian cricket religiously. Then T20 happened, i realized that cricket players are also professionals who just do their work for money. Many cricketers seem more passionate playing in IPL than test cricket. Infact, i saw many of my heroes faking injury before test tour and showing up in IPL. It killed the fan in me. Now i watch cricket, little bit, just like i keep track of whats happening in WWE. I don't have any emotional attachment to it. Trust me, its same with many of my friends. We used to stand at road side shops to catch live score but nowdays kids don't really care at all. My younger cousins are more into video games.

 

[Nadeemp]

I can’t stand t20. But it’s here to stay. Nothing beats a test match on a challenging pitch. Same can be said of 50-50. Noting like a low scoring one day game where the ball is moving. A 6 should be a rarity. Used to be. Now if someone hits 3 sixes I am yawning.

 

[Nadeemp]

Make the grounds bigger and pitches a bit more lively for t20. Otherwise it’s so monotonous

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

My comparison with the EPL and lower league football is valid. Have you ever watched lower league football? I'd invite you to watch a Scottish League 2 game and tell me that is the same form of the game as the average EPL game. Yet fans of lower league games often view their games as a more pure form of the game uncorrupted by money and more traditional. You have a choice watch whichever version you find entertaining but if a fan of a lower league team started demanding the abolition of the more popular game quite rightly t they would be criticised. Yet in cricket it's seen as fair game to attack T20 fans for liking a format of the game that attracts more crowds, finance and let's be honest more entertainment. It's just a form of snobbery from Test cricket fans scared that the form of the game they enjoy is not actually that popular.

Sorry if that feels like another rant but I'm fed up with being looked down on for preferring T20 cricket as though it makes me a simpleton for wanting to be entertained.

Your point would be valid [MENTION=51509]Shaka81[/MENTION] if Scottish Lower League football games were played over 50 minutes with wider goal posts and no offside rule or over 130 minutes with bigger pitches.

All football everywhere is played in one format and one set of rules. Of course the quality in elite leagues will be entirely different to lower leagues - just as it is in any other sport.

However, back to your point that T20 attracts larger crowds, financing and entertainment. I am not disagreeing with it and have already said it is here to stay. You will make sure you fund it.

Trouble is, straying too far from the main format for a quick buck and easy entertainment may have got us an audience that is fickle and not in love with the sport. This is T20s heyday so it looks good but over time, these fans will get into other sports and cricket will become a side show - like field hockey, squash, track and field, baseball etc. We are already seeing cricket's decline in places like the West Indies and Pakistan.

That's why I feel T20s should have specific windows so you can be entertained but test cricket should get all the innovations and backing it deserves so it can continue sustaining the sport. And when it is done right, test cricket is breathtakingly entertaining and gets proper audiences.

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

https://www.sportingnews.com/au/cricket/news/test-cricket-dying-mcc-survey-fans-games-longest-format-ashes/1mdegok5e6aez19dt549wjnpj6#:~:text=because%20Test%20cricket%20is%20actually,gave%20priority%20to%20Test%20cricket.

CRICKET
10/03/19
Test cricket dying? No way: MCC survey reveals 86% of fans prefer game's longest format
WRITTEN BY
JAMES PAVEY [MENTION=1842]James[/MENTION]pavey_
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The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) has revealed that a whopping 86 per cent of fans prefer watching the game's longest and oldest format over white-ball cricket.

The MCC released its own 'Test Cricket survey' in the effort to uncover how fans view the five-day format.


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The survey was compiled from data from across 100 countries and over 13,000 participants, and the final response was overwhelming.

In a release, the MCC said Test cricket "came out as the format that interests fans the most, regardless of country supported or age", and forecasted a "positive future" for the five-day game.

MORE: David Warner creams another grade century in return from elbow injury

According to the release, 86 per cent of responders said Test cricket was their "preferred" format, and considered it to be the "pinnacle of cricket".

ODIs, T20Is and domestic T20s followed Test cricket in that order - an interesting result considering the game's governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC), has previously acknowledged that the rapid growth of T20 cricket is leading cricket's growth worldwide.

ICC chairman Shashank Manohar was forthright in his assessment: "We are trying to see whether Test championship can generate interest... because Test cricket is actually dying to be honest."

After the governing body conducted their own survey last year - where 68 per cent of over 19,000 participants backed Test cricket - ICC CEO Dave Richardson said the red-ball game was "not dying" because the game's global fan base still gave priority to Test cricket.

Richardson said the survey also highlighted why Test cricket was alive as two-thirds of the global fan base still wanted to support the longer format, but just struggled to make time to do so.


"We have got more than a billion fans that follow cricket - 68 per cent of them are fans of all three formats of the game, which means that close to 700 million people are fans of Test cricket," Richardson said earlier this month.

"So it is wrong to say that Test cricket is dying. It is harder for people to go to five days of a Test match, spend every day sitting there for six hours.

"Maybe the way that people are following Test cricket is different to what it was say 10, 20 years ago. But I don't think it is dying. The Test Championship, though, will provide more context and more interest and just be an extra hat peg that we can hang our hats on."

Those sentiments were echoed in the MCC survey, with fans suggesting matchday experiences should become more affordable and accessible, with ticket prices - and half-day tickets - high on fans' minds.

Respondents also wanted more access to Test cricket on free-to-air TV - something fans in England haven't seen since Tests went behind the Sky Sports paywall.

Australian cricket just completed its first summer under the new Seven Network-Foxtel relationship. Where Fox Sports showed all international and domestic white-ball cricket live on a dedicated channel, Seven showed Test cricket and select Big Bash League matches.

While fans had months to organise themselves ahead of cricket's new broadcasting regime, many were still left disillusioned by a changing of the guard, right from the first international of the summer.

As the summer wore on, according to Test legend Ian Healy, concerning ratings and poor crowd figures were evidence pay TV was hurting cricket's reach to the Aussie public.

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Regardless, there's serious love for Test cricket, not just by fans - the sport's biggest name, Indian captain Virat Kohli, said that it should not be "tinkered" with.

"I cannot explain to you the job satisfaction that you get when you do well in Test cricket, because you know how demanding it is," Kohli told Wisden last year.

"It's the most beautiful format of the game. I don’t think it’s going to go anywhere. I don’t even see it getting compressed to four days."

Former Sri Lanka star and current MCC World Cricket committee member Kumar Sangakkara said recent results in Test cricket have put love back into the longest format.

In that period, India pushed South Africa and England and defeated Australia away, New Zealand took down Pakistan in the UAE, England were dusted by West Indies, and most recently, Sri Lanka somehow downed the Proteas in South Africa.

"There's a real opportunity - and responsibility - for us all to cement the future of our superb longer form," Sangakkara said.

Former England captain and MCC World Cricket committee chairman Mike Gatting said cricket's bigwigs need to listen to fans and not invest too heavily in T20's burgeoning growth, with the likes of the Big Bash and the Hundred still ruffling a few feathers.

"Virat has expressed his commitment to maintaining the position of Test cricket at the top of the sport, while off the back of South Africa's one-wicket defeat to Sri Lanka Faf [du Plessis] insisted such matches demonstrateTest cricket is still the number one format," Gatting said.

"When you have high-profile leaders like Virat and Faf being part of hugely exciting series, it shows what Test cricket can be."