Thrills and shocks cannot erase future ODI concerns

The ODI World Cup ended on Sunday with Australia doing what they do. India was at the other end of the rankings. The stadium held more than 92,000 people and more than five million people were tuned into digital streaming at any given time. To say the country is not addicted would be an understatement. The tournament, which lasted six weeks, witnessed some exciting matches, but perhaps not enough. Afghanistan has captured everyone’s imagination despite its meager resources. New Zealand and South Africa played incredible cricket to qualify for the semi-finals. Records were set in terms of stadium attendance and digital broadcast audiences. Yet, one can’t help but think: where is ODI cricket?

The tournament started with question marks over its future and continued with boring contests for most of the 10-team tournament. The format didn’t really help matters either. It could be argued that the current format is rigged to favor big teams. Even if smaller teams pull off a few surprise victories, like Afghanistan, there’s a good chance they’ll advance. The 48 matches are divided into 45 league matches and only three knockout matches. If the goal is to attract continuous eyeballs, the goal should be to have many matches with something that overlaps with them. This is surely a concept that Latest is aware of when they introduced the World Test Championship cycle with a final at the end.

The Netherlands beat South Africa and it didn’t make much noise. Australia lost two matches at the start of the tournament, New Zealand lost four matches in a row and yet qualified. All that changed, in the end, was the order of their progression to the semi-finals.

For comparison, last year’s FIFA World Cup in Qatar had three group stage matches followed by the round of 16. One might also object to this format and football is guilty of overdoing it with the number of teams. But what if there was an Argentina who bounced back from a defeat against Saudi Arabia to end their trophy drought. There was also the monumental summit of Morocco and Japan, surpassing countries like Belgium and Germany.

Moving away from the format issue, the 50+ format strikes the perfect balance between Tests and T20s. Proponents of Test cricket argue that it offers strategic cricket and a “true test” of a cricketer over a five-day period. A mental and physical test. T20, in comparison, offers a brilliant opportunity with a quick result. ODI is the one that falls in between. There is enough time for a team to make a comeback while still offering the inevitability of a result in a single day.

T20 produces its share of drama and magic while filling the coffers of national boards, as evidenced by the continued rise of the Indian Premier League and the birth of numerous T20 competitions across the planet. But he is rarely able to offer them on a regular basis and is incapable of producing clashes that remain engraved in the memory.

The ability to stage an epic comeback was particularly evident in Australia’s thrilling victory over Afghanistan. On the brink of defeat, Australia were reduced to 91/7 with 292 runs to go. Glenn Maxwell came on to score an incredible double century to secure a three-wicket victory.

Pat Cummins, who was stationed at the other end of Maxwell’s smash hit at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, admitted to having mixed emotions after leading Australia to a record sixth World Cup title.

“It’s hard to say. Maybe because we won, but I fell in love with ODI again this World Cup,” said fast bowler Cummins, who took a stunning 2-34 on their maximum of 10 overs as Australia held India to a modest total of 240 all out.

The scenario of a necessary comeback was repeated once again in the final, but in a less dramatic manner. Travis Head scored 137 runs off 120 balls from a point where Australia were 47/3 and had lost the top three batters rather meekly.

“I think the scenario where every match really counts makes it a little bit different from just a bilateral (ODI) match,” Cummins said.

Australia has a rich history in the World Cup winning six in the ODI format and one in the T20. It all started with a run to the final in 1975 where they lost to the West Indies. The first trophy arrived in 1987 and others were won in 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2015. “The World Cup has such a rich history, I’m sure it will last for a long time,” said the World Cup player. 30 years. Cummins. “There have been so many wonderful matches, so many wonderful stories over these last few months. So, I think there’s definitely a place (for it).



But there is still time between now and the next edition in South Africa in 2027. Regime change could also play a role, with new MCC president Mark Nicholas calling for all ODIs between World Cups to be scrapped .

“We strongly believe that ODIs should be World Cups only,” he said. ESPNcricinfo.

“They don’t fill fields in a lot of countries. And there is a power over T20 cricket right now that is almost supernatural.

He added: “In a free market, it’s who makes the most money. »

If things go as he suggests – without bilateral ODIs between tournaments such as the World Cup and the Champions Trophy – how will these teams maintain their standard or become even better at 50-over cricket? Additionally, it takes away the appeal of playing 50-over cricket for associated teams. As the sport comes to the Olympics in the shorter format, the move towards a more T20 friendly schedule, including leagues, seems inevitable.