Vijayhardik argues in favour of the five-day Test match versus T20 match. Here’s a curtain raiser, exclusively for Different Truths.

The oldest format of the game of cricket, the Test match and its popularity has been debated wildly on live television during the course of games, sports bulletins, opinion pieces in different medium of media. It was a newsworthy facet that was discussed across the spectrum by the cricketing fraternity.

The issue of its declining popularity and low turnout of crowds at the stadiums to view the games had alarm bells ringing in the corridors of the cricket boards. Dwindling crowds thronging the stadiums seems to be an effect of the changing world scenario where people live in a world of instant gratification and the advent of the T20 format, which is a more slam-bang version and shortened version which appeals to masses of the day.

While the gen-next lives in a world where everything is operated by the tips of their fingers, they also believe in competitiveness. The Test format is a rigorous test of skill and endurance over a period of five days.

While the gen-next lives in a world where everything is operated by the tips of their fingers, they also believe in competitiveness. The Test format is a rigorous test of skill and endurance over a period of five days. Playing in situations where skill and technique are tested requires temperament which is an acquired skill gained with experience.

Tackling the bouncy pitches, green tops where the bowlers make the ball talk and deftly handling the ball on a pitch turning square requires finesse, ability, temperament which require the players to be patient. It requires the spectators to be patient as well which is a diminishing quality in the world today.

So, the ICC appealing to the competitive nature of the present-day population has tweaked the coveted format of cricket a wee bit.

So, the ICC appealing to the competitive nature of the present-day population has tweaked the coveted format of cricket a wee bit. Earlier, the Test matches scheduled between cricket playing nations were bilateral affairs mutually decided by the cricket boards of the respected countries. This led to some countries not facing each other for long durations while some countries faced each other so regularly the that zing in the contest evaporated.

To bring back the zing and revive the popularity of Test cricket among the masses the ICC, the apex body of world cricket introduced the World Test Championship.

The idea of holding a World Test Championship first germinated in the year 2010.

The idea of holding a World Test Championship first germinated in the year 2010. Reports of dismal attendance of spectators to view the game prompted the apex body to think of instituting such a tournament.

I would like to quote a few recent examples of a no-show by the spectators during a Test match. With every new development, there are a few naysayers who do not like a change. These examples might help them understand.

The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) is the largest cricket ground in the world, which can seat up to 100,000 spectators. But during a Test match between Australia and West Indies saw a turnout of 127,069 over the period of the match.

The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) is the largest cricket ground in the world, which can seat up to 100,000 spectators. But during a Test match between Australia and West Indies saw a turnout of 127,069 over the period of the match. Only 7000 odd people turned up on the fourth day of the match, a 21-year low for an MCG Boxing Day test match turnout.

During the second Test between Australia and West Indies, a parallel cricket tournament was also underway. It was the Big Bash League and Women’s Big Bash League. While the men’s tournament saw turnouts of 80,000 per match, the women’s Big Bash League game saw 14,611 spectators while the entire turnout during the Test match was 15000 odd people. While these statistics are a representation of Australia, the same situation is prevalent all around the world.

Ahead of the 2016 season of the IPL Stuart Binny said the following, “People don’t pay money to come and see you get wickets. People pay money to see you get hit out of the ground. We (bowlers) have taken that in our stride.”

The impact of the T20 has diminished the relevance of the longest format of the game.

The impact of the T20 has diminished the relevance of the longest format of the game. This is where the World Test Championship comes in, making the Test format of the game relevant to the masses.

It was attempted to kickstart the tournament in 2013 replacing the 2013 Champions Trophy but it did not materialise. The story once again replayed in 2017. Finally, in 2019, the ICC World Test Championship is seeing the light of the day.

The tournament has a very interesting format. The Test Championship will take place over a span of two years. The inaugural tournament will take place from 2019-2021. It will ultimately culminate at Lords in June 2021 where the top two teams will contest to be crowned the Test champions.

As the former Aussie skipper Michael Clarke quips, “World Test Championship will be like a World Cup”; here each team will play six opponents.

As the former Aussie skipper Michael Clarke quips, “World Test Championship will be like a World Cup”; here each team will play six opponents. Three opponents at home and three in the backyard of their rivals over a period of two years. The bilateral series between different teams will be of varying lengths of matches.

It presents a difficult situation for the organisers with each team playing different number of matches. How do we even things out in such a situation? To ease a complex situation, the ICC has devised a method of points even things out.

The point system gives each team the opportunity to win 120 points from each series.

The point system gives each team the opportunity to win 120 points from each series. Wracking its brains, it has looked into the different possible scenarios that can be possible in a series has divided the point on the basis of the length of the series, ranging from a two-match series to a long five match series.

Depending on the outcomes of the respective series of each country, the teams stack up points to determine their place on the leader board in the league stage. The Ashes, a bilateral event with its own history, kickstarting an event which is going to create history, seems an apt setting to tournament which begins on 1 August 2019.

This new twist to an existing and lasting format of the game, considered by the true-blue fans of the sport as the purest form of cricket, gives a new lease of life making it a bit more palatable to the modern-day generation.

Photos sourced by the author from Internet