Why Twenty20 will knock traditional cricket for six

Al says:

05:50am | 05/01/10

What’s Tulloch? Hey Jules, what a smashing piece. 20/20 will knock ‘em dead. Silly toffs!

Super D says:

05:58am | 05/01/10

The thing that the game does need to be careful about is that State selection continues to be a stepping stone for national duties rather than simply providing a feeder for overseas league. 

There should also be some consideration of recouping cricket academy costs from successful players who will be rolling in cash thanks to the IPL.  It would be a real shame to see a couple of dozen cricketers making mega millions while the structures that made them collapse.

monkeytypist says:

06:34am | 05/01/10

Really Julie?  I look forward to your strong support when we see competitive swimming embrace the practice of draining the pool after the contestants start to provoke more excitement, or giving football players clown cars.  You can’t object to that!  The sport will evolve!  The only thing that matters is cheap thrill, not athletic contest at all!

Claire says:

06:38am | 05/01/10

I’m a traditionalist (I believe in a return to timeless Tests, none of this draw nonsense) but I have to admit, regretfully and sadly, that you’re probably right.

The attention span of the average fan has shortened almost to extinction in one generation alone, and in another couple of years, we can confidently expect a general sneering at Twenty20 traditionalists, with Five5 established as the new norm.

Daniel says:

07:00am | 05/01/10

I have never been able to afford to go to a game so I dont bother with following the game now.

Callie says:

07:52am | 05/01/10

Hey Daniel (posted at 8am) - support your state 20/20 games! I went to Vic v NSW last week, an amazing, fun and action-packed game - $10 adults and $5 for kids. Best cheap night out going around!

Rick Eyre says:

08:41am | 05/01/10

Cricket Australia has done a great job with the scheduling of the 20/20 comp this year, and they’ve had some huge crowds to show for it. But this should never be seen as replacing “traditional” cricket. It’s bringing a new audience in through the turnstiles and giving them a fun three or four hours night out. Importantly, it’s introducing fans to the game at state level. But Test cricket is not dying - it takes more than just attendance figures and TV ratings to measure its importance with the sporting public. If some of the revenue raised by Cricket Australia from the Twenty20 comp goes into supporting Test and shield cricket, then it’s a win all round for the sport.

SLF says:

08:48am | 05/01/10

What a load of nonsense.

Test cricket is nowhere near from being dead. This summer we have seen some great cricket, look at the test at the SCG at the moment for drama and an excellent contest. The series on in South Africa is currently one of the most exciting I have seen and next summer the Ashes are on again.

I suppose the 60,000 at the MCG on boxing day had got lost and ended up there by accident? As for the last day, you always get poor crowds on the last day of a test when the result is a forgone conclusion..

Whilst 20:20 has its place, and will hopefully curtail the 50 over game, it really is no threat to test matches, infact I believe now more than ever the TV ratings, radio figures and online viewing are better than ever in all major test playing countries.

Martin G says:

08:53am | 05/01/10

20/20 HIT & GIGGLE is just a fad, not around for the long haul like TEST CRICKET. But hey if you want to go see some bastardised version of baseball, then 20/20 is your game.

There is one thing, however, TEST CRICKET can learn, and that is personality. TEST CRICKET is lacking the personalities like they had in the 80s. Be honest, who really loves Michael Clarke? He is just a boring professional cricketer. I love the team, like the players, but don’t really love the players.

Mind you, the media have had a lot to do with killing off personality. By making big stories out of a minor comments, they forced the players into media management training. Now it’s ‘disappointing’ this and ‘positive’ that.

RobJ says:

09:58am | 05/01/10

Riiiight, When I arrived in Australia in 1992 I didn’t have much interest in cricket, the World Cup was on, I took an interest when Gower and Botham spat the dummy at a do where somebody was impersonating the Queen.

Anyway, I started watching one day cricket, I enjoyed it so I decided to take a look at test cricket, I didn’t like it…. I LOVED it. I still enjoy ODIs and T20 but test cricket is the most enjoyable. I agree with those who consider T20 a way of generating more interest in cricket generally.

AFR says:

10:09am | 05/01/10

Methinks reports of Test Cricket’s death have been greatly exaggerated.

stephen says:

12:20pm | 05/01/10

20/20/ cricket is all nervous energy. There’s no thought or foresight or planning in it. The five days of Test Cricket is for men,- quite apart from the fact of demarcation of attack and defence -  cause men are planners and look to the future, (although I did know a bloke once who won 200 bucks at Albion Park and went and blew it on a pair of shoes before thinking what else to do with it, but he’s in the Navy now).
Test cricket has a varied and more interesting rhythm because of the time constraints. It’s a more mentally challenging game, for both player and spectator,(!) and I reckon if the ACB don’t wanna upkeep it, then the Govt. should keep it afloat.
(Hell, I could go on for hours about the beauty of this game and the ridiculousness of these newfangs ).

Julian says:

05:35pm | 05/01/10

There’s a definite threat to traditional cricket. Five days of calculated cricket can be very boring. They have to look at how to keep the fans. Big challenge.

Timmuh says:

06:15pm | 05/01/10

If that happens, T20 won’t have just killed traditional cricket. It will have killed cricket. T20 might be entertaining at times, but it sure isn’t cricket.

I wish I had Fox so I could watch the South Africa v England series. Looks a beauty, something that can rarely be said of 50 or 20 over series.

acker says:

06:24pm | 05/01/10

Seen it all before with Indoor cricket Julie.
If managed properly Twent/20 cricket should give the often struggling test cricket a big shot in the arm..and great prospect for a long and healthy future.
Test crickets darkest days were between 1962 - 1971 where it realy did look like it was going down the gurgler because it had become too private school orientated and exclusive.
It realy does need some better thought out junior development funding now..kanga cricket is stale..something based on the hugely succesfull AFL Auskick program is needed.

tc says:

07:21pm | 05/01/10

Rubbish Julie. Youre a marketing victim and youre confusing sport with the business of entertainment.

The problem is that marketers think they run the world, and that the aim of the game is to profit. Hit and run 20/20 is a kids game. Its purpose is to entertain, grab attention, and sell advertising space.

There will always be those who are interested actual sport where skill, patience, and strategy play a role in a game played by athletes who play because they actually love it.

The only threat here is that advertisers and tv stations will continue to interfere in sport in the interests of making money and call it progress. Money and greed has damaged sport hugely, bastardising the entire concept and creating entirely the wrong atmosphere.

Sportsmen are not heroes. Sport is not about how many “fans” you create. Sport is not enterainment. Sport is not business. Sport is a game and the sooner the marketers and businessmen stop screwing with it for profit, the better off we will all be.

There is a thing called the “spirit of the game” but unfortunately this is recently eclipsed by greed

brett says:

07:47pm | 05/01/10

Marketing in sport has ruined it for me. Every time I see the 3 logo I cringe.
I have vowed never to support any major sponsors who force the players to put on the caps in front of cameras. It’s so sickening. And Ethiad Stadium, I’ll never go there. A corporation sponsored by a filthy rich government in oil production that has lead to most CO2 emissions.
As for test cricket it is the tradition and incorporates a tale of perseverance and struggle over days of battle. T20 is slog and run where’s my money, and thanks for coming.

Dave says:

11:01pm | 05/01/10

Julie, you clearly have no idea what it’s like to be a real fan of the cricket. Cricket fans (generally) LOVE test cricket. 20/20 & ODI’s are great too, but Test Cricket is what it’s all about. Test cricket is one of the very few programs aired on TV that will delay the 6pm news if necessary - it’s considered that important (at least by the channel 9 powers that be). I dont think test cricket is going anywhere for a long time, not in this country.

Julie Tullberg says:

11:45pm | 05/01/10

Cricket is a business. This is a fact because cricketers are on a payroll. Professional sport is a business, otherwise they wouldn’t be called professionals. Players like David Warner have made a comfortable living by playing Twenty20. Business is making sport entertaining to the masses, bringing in thousands through the gate. That takes marketing, incentives (money via business strategies) and quality sport, in which people are motivated by the big bucks (a fact of life). It’s naive to not think of sport as a business.

TB says:

05:02am | 06/01/10

tc - when you really think about it, sport is little more than another manifestation of the ass-backwards social value of competition, the erroneous notion that our natural state is to be at each others throats, and this childish duality of ‘winners’ and ‘losers.’ Business and greed has certainly made it more farcical and preposterous - but the fact is sport has its roots in what could be regarded as harmful and aberrant behaviour. I’d like to live to see the day when we as a society finally outgrow the need for such childish displays, but I very much doubt I will.

Tom says:

11:27am | 06/01/10

Julie you wouldn’t now know anything about cricket get back into line for the pie stand.

The recent Test series between Australia and South Africa was the most gripping cricket in a long time.

Twenty20 will never have the same emotion and drama that you claim and write about.

The stars of Twenty20 are only stars because Test cricket made them into household names.

I don’t know anyone who comes to see Bran Noname who has played a few rounds of Pura Milk Cup smash the ball around in the KFC Big Bash

Jack says:

01:18pm | 06/01/10

the whole Cricket calendar and setup needs to be re-worked or face a take over from the private sector in the Packer style World Series Cricket.

how about this

club competition building on Twenty20 IPL with teams in South Africa, Australia and England playing weekly like an NRL calendar

national games beginning with ODI’s followed by Test are then held with different teams touring different nations each year maintaining an Ashes series and boxing day test

every two years at the end of the season you can hold a World Cup of Twenty 20 then ODI’s

every fourth year the top ranked nations holds a Super Series against a World XI

now that would give the cricket world a shake up

sick of watching Australia play a billion games against one nation then move on and play a billion against another

lets think outside the box

SLF says:

04:19pm | 06/01/10

Having just watched one of the most enthralling test matches ever, in a packed lunch room, I have to agree that Test Cricket is well and truly alive and kicking.

A superb game that had everything and is evertyhting 20:20 is not

Bradley Menace says:

02:27pm | 21/01/10

How about we slash tennis to best of five games? What about trialling 30 min footy games? How about 10m swimming pools? What is your obsession with changing a perfect game already Julie? You’ve lost me, i’m never reading thjis site again.