The best of three worlds

Cricket continues to be a way of life for people especially in India, and the presence of three formats makes them watch their ‘heroes’ play frequently throughout the calendar year. So, the focus here would be on the beauty of Tests, ODIs and T20 cricket equally despite the criticism they all face.

It all started with Test matches, which is the longest format spread over five days! The prime reason why this format must never be scrapped is because it provides a fair contest between batsmen and bowlers and is a true ‘Test’ for both when it comes to their temperament and skill. If you have mastered the technique of playing Tests, you can easily adapt to the other two formats of the game and not vice a versa.

After realizing that Test matches were not gathering big crowds, Australia’s Kerry Packer formed his bunch of ‘rebel’ cricketers playing in coloured clothing and under floodlights. Back then; this was an idea way ahead of its time. But thanks to Packer, we now can see one day cricket.

A match spread just across 1 day and that too 50 overs per side, this is a faster format and surely more entertaining. A good player might only be a Test specialist, while a great player is good at both Test and ODI cricket perhaps. This format judges a players ability to adapt quickly to different conditions, run faster between the wickets and save runs on the field.

However, with the reducing attention span of the current generation, England’s Stuart Robinson proposed a format which has definitely changed the landscape of the game! Cricket is just played within 3 hours and only 20 overs per team to decide the winner. India won the first ever T20 World Cup and that played catalyst in the formation of the Indian Premier League which brings millions of dollars to some of the finest cricketers across the world, whether they are a work in progress or experienced.

T20 is the heartthrob of an entire family since it is all about fours and sixes, making it a completely entertaining experience and money’s worth for them. They can also get to know about more products in the market for consumption, due to the increasing amount of advertisements by businesses.

This format is all about speed and thus cannot be considered negative exactly, for it has made ODIs and Tests far more interesting and result oriented respectively as Rahul Dravid has pointed out recently. Not just batsmen, but even bowlers have become smarter and innovative in their skill implementation.

Thus, all the 3 formats have to co-exist well in order for cricket to survive for another 100 years at least.