Canberra: Rahul Dravid has urged the ICC to cut down on the number of “meaningless” ODIs and instead focus on 50-over format of major tournaments like the World Cup, besides exploring the possibility of day-night Test cricket.
“It must scale down this mad merry-go-round that teams and players find themselves in: heading off for two-Test tours and seven-match ODI series with a few Twenty20s thrown in.
“Since about, I think 1985, people have been saying that there is too much meaningless one-day cricket. Maybe it’s finally time to do something about it…Anything makes more sense than seven-match ODI series,” he added.
Dravid said he was surprised to see the lack of crowd during the India-England ODI series in October in India and described the sight of empty stands as “alarming”.
“The five-match series against England was the first time our grounds were not full for an ODI featuring Indian team. The India v England ODI series had no context, because the two countries had played each other in four Tests and five ODIs just a few weeks before.
“When India and the West Indies played ODIs a month after that, the grounds were full but this time matches were played in smaller venues that didn’t host too much international cricket. Maybe our clues are all there and we must remain vigilant,” he said, according to espncricinfo.com.
The middle-order maestro, who was here to deliver the annual Bradman Oration, the first foreign player to do so, also believed that efforts needed to be put in to bring fans back to the longer form of the game.
“Test cricket deserves to be protected, it is what the world’s best know they will be judged by. I don’t think day-night Tests or a Test championship should be dismissed. In March last year I played a day-night first-class game in Abu Dhabi for the MCC – and my experience from that was that day-night Tests is an idea seriously worth exploring.
“There may be some challenges in places where there is dew but the visibility and durability of the pink cricket ball was not an issue.”
Plans were afoot to organise the championship in 2013 but commitments to the broadcaster and sponsors forced the ICC to postpone it until 2017.(PTI)