Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
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JJprocter

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I am currently amidst my A-levels and one of my subjects involves a 5000 word essay on a chosen subject. As a huge test cricket fan I can't help but think that test cricket is slowly dying out and after seeing the antics associated with the West Indies national team I believe that the rise of T20 cricket is playing a large role as to the reason why test cricket is dying out.
Part of my course is having to collect opinions in order to expand and analyse it. I would like to know anyone's thoughts and opinions and would also really appreciate any interesting facts, stats and figures that anybody knows about.
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InternalTraining

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #1 on: October 10, 2018, 10:06:19 AM »

No.
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Seniorplayer

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #2 on: October 10, 2018, 10:34:51 AM »

Test cricket still strong in the uk attendances down in India windies and Aus .
England  and world wide T20 has an affect on Ist class cricket players not travelling worldwide  to play it in the numbers like  they used to. Knock on affect modern cricketers not learning  the skills to play test matches.
In England county championship played at the beginning and end of season to accomadate the T20 blast.
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SLA

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #3 on: October 10, 2018, 10:49:21 AM »

Well, yes and no. There is still a far bigger audience for test cricket than there is for T20 cricket, especially in traditional test-loving countries like England and Australia who are able to offer financially attractive central contract to their test players, and I don't see that changing anytime soon.

But T20 has had a bigger impact in some of the poorer test playing nations, like the West Indies, who have lost a lot of their players to T20 cricket because they are financially outmuscled by the organised crime syndicates that run the IPL, and as a result the quality of their test team has fallen so far that they are barely test standard at all.

However, this isn't limited to the west indies. The quality of test match cricket has plummeted world-wide over the past 5 years, and this is entirely due to a contraction in the players willing to focus on red ball skills.

Young players have been taught white ball skills in place of red ball skills for a decade or more now; it should therefore have come as no great surprise when the standard of red ball cricket started to decline as it did a few years back.



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Jimmy Tiwana

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #4 on: October 10, 2018, 03:19:17 PM »

Thoughts from Shane Warne..... https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/av/cricket/45813540
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Buzz

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #5 on: October 10, 2018, 03:40:36 PM »

To be honest the broadcasters buying rights to all these terrible t10 and t20 competitions around the globe rather than the test matches is having an impact.

Wisden bought the rights for Pak vs Aus on the radio for only £5k.

The boards and tv companies are the issue not the format.
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SLA

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #6 on: October 10, 2018, 04:19:44 PM »

To be honest the broadcasters buying rights to all these terrible t10 and t20 competitions around the globe rather than the test matches is having an impact.

Wisden bought the rights for Pak vs Aus on the radio for only £5k.

The boards and tv companies are the issue not the format.


Certainly I couldn't understand sky showing South Africa vs Zimbabwe T20 instead of Pakistan vs Australia Test match, which they didn't even have the rights for at all! Pathetic.

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ProCricketer1982

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #7 on: October 10, 2018, 09:45:40 PM »

Absolutely it’s harming red ball cricket but it’s not t20’s fault really. It’s the fact counties and boards are prioritising it and so training their players and amateurs to only play limited over hitting fests.. no wonder the skills required for red ball are dying out .

Just look at any game around the country and you can see that most of the players simply wouldn’t have the tactical or mental skills needed to play red ball comsistently
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adb club cricketer

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #8 on: October 10, 2018, 10:17:48 PM »

I think it is mainly consumer driven towards shorter formats which is driving almost all money into it  and sponsors/tv/boards following suit. A few players and viewers like test cricket but they are in a minority. There is interest in just a few countries such as Eng, Aus and Ind but even there, the numbers are not that great compared to limited overs formats.  ICC alone could have done something different and drastic to make sure Test cricket not just survives but thrives, but they haven't done anything in that regard and I think test cricket is now at a point of no return.

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ProCricketer1982

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #9 on: October 11, 2018, 06:49:44 AM »

I think it is mainly consumer driven towards shorter formats which is driving almost all money into it  and sponsors/tv/boards following suit. A few players and viewers like test cricket but they are in a minority. There is interest in just a few countries such as Eng, Aus and Ind but even there, the numbers are not that great compared to limited overs formats.  ICC alone could have done something different and drastic to make sure Test cricket not just survives but thrives, but they haven't done anything in that regard and I think test cricket is now at a point of no return.

What’s always interesting about the above point is.. more people go to see a white ball international game right ? Is that because they prefer that format ? Or is it because if you’re going to spend that kind of money and you can only go to one day.. you’re going to naturally choose a shorter format to see a full game, both teams bat/bowl .. and.. especially 2020.. it’s the perfect beerhead format where you just go and get sloshed (so they aren’t really watching it anyway).

No one really ever mentions that angle but most people I speak to who do like white ball and red ball will one to to go watch a white ball game purely and simply because it’s one day etc.. not one has said ‘it’s the best format’.. always ‘I can’t afford the money/time for a test match’ or ‘I want to see both sides ‘

Hence why I’m sceptical when people try and tell me people prefer white ball.. that’s not really the truth unless you literally take statistics and look no further
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prim0pyr0

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #10 on: October 11, 2018, 07:31:18 AM »

Test cricket is like a long road trip, lots of time nothing happens and its tiring, but its exciting to get where you're going and what will happen Tommrow.
Never played in a 5 day test.. Imagine it would be awesome if youre in the zone batting.
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SLA

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #11 on: October 11, 2018, 08:33:00 AM »

I think it is mainly consumer driven towards shorter formats which is driving almost all money into it  and sponsors/tv/boards following suit. A few players and viewers like test cricket but they are in a minority. There is interest in just a few countries such as Eng, Aus and Ind but even there, the numbers are not that great compared to limited overs formats.  ICC alone could have done something different and drastic to make sure Test cricket not just survives but thrives, but they haven't done anything in that regard and I think test cricket is now at a point of no return.

Worldwide you might be right, but in England and Australia test cricket still gets significantly higher (ie roughly twice the amount) tv viewer numbers than T20 cricket.
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SLA

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #12 on: October 11, 2018, 08:34:33 AM »

What’s always interesting about the above point is.. more people go to see a white ball international game right ? Is that because they prefer that format ? Or is it because if you’re going to spend that kind of money and you can only go to one day.. you’re going to naturally choose a shorter format to see a full game, both teams bat/bowl .. and.. especially 2020.. it’s the perfect beerhead format where you just go and get sloshed (so they aren’t really watching it anyway).

No one really ever mentions that angle but most people I speak to who do like white ball and red ball will one to to go watch a white ball game purely and simply because it’s one day etc.. not one has said ‘it’s the best format’.. always ‘I can’t afford the money/time for a test match’ or ‘I want to see both sides ‘

Hence why I’m sceptical when people try and tell me people prefer white ball.. that’s not really the truth unless you literally take statistics and look no further

I think if you looked at the stats, over the course of an English summer, far more people will go to a day at the test than a day at an ODI or T20I.

Looking at men's international cricket only, there were 7 tests, 9 ODIs and 4 T20Is in England in 2018, assuming tests last 4 days on average, that's 28 days of red ball cricket and 13 days of white ball cricket.

Provided the red ball games were at least half full on average (and I'm sure they were), then its accurate to say that test cricket drew the higher total crowds.
« Last Edit: October 11, 2018, 08:40:32 AM by SLA »
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ProCricketer1982

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Re: Is T20 cricket leading to the demise of traditional test cricket?
« Reply #13 on: October 11, 2018, 06:28:52 PM »

I think if you looked at the stats, over the course of an English summer, far more people will go to a day at the test than a day at an ODI or T20I.

Looking at men's international cricket only, there were 7 tests, 9 ODIs and 4 T20Is in England in 2018, assuming tests last 4 days on average, that's 28 days of red ball cricket and 13 days of white ball cricket.

Provided the red ball games were at least half full on average (and I'm sure they were), then its accurate to say that test cricket drew the higher total crowds.

You forget that 2020/50 over attendances at white ball games at county level esceeed domestic red ball.. meaning players pick white ball.. meaning the skills devalue. Amateur cricket has gone the same way, skills are declining as the game is dumbed down

This feeds into test crickets wuality dropping and so more money into white ball..

Either way, white ball is killing test cricket and the lack of amateur draw cricket is also killing the quality of amateur games
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