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Will ODI cricket survive in the next 10-15 years?

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Cricket News: Will ODI cricket survive in the next 10-15 years? | Is ODI cricket dead? A look at the format in the cricket landscape


The crowds were low for Australia’s matches at the T20 World Cup. So, who could have possibly expected good turnouts for a random ODI series just days after the final?

England, less than ten days after winning the tournament, completed a meaningless three-match bilateral ODI series in another example of the saturated, unforgiving cricketing schedule. The series was not even part of the ODI Super League, which was brought in as an attempt to add context to a format often devoid of it.

Even then, one-dayers continue to be left in the wilderness amid the amount of T20 Internationals played, rise in T20 leagues and Test cricket.

Will ODI cricket survive? A look at what fans think

Just after Ben Stokes retired from ODIs to prolong his career, CricBlog took the opportunity to gather insights from fans on the future of cricket.

33.6% of respondents believe that ODI cricket will no longer be around by 2037. The key reason is the format struggles to deliver any real meaning in a saturated calendar. In fact, 58.1% of respondents believe that a reduction in T20 Internationals can help the 50-over game.

Cricket News: Will ODI cricket survive in the next 10-15 years? | Is ODI cricket dead? A look at the format in the cricket landscape

Other ways to revatilise the game in the eyes of fans is to have more wickets that seam and spin. Part of the attractiveness of the 2022 T20 World Cup was the battle between bat and ball. This needs to be replicated in ODI cricket where pitches are often flat.

Also, the move to have a new ball from each end has killed off reverse swing. The likes of Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram swinging the ball around corners in the death overs still makes highlight reels and Twitter timelines today in a world where it is difficult to remember the result of an ODI played a week ago.

Such changes may see fans grow fonder of the ODI format once again. Currently, over half of respondents (52.4%) would pick the one-day game as the format to drop to reduce scheduling pressures.

Players have questioned the relevancy and future of ODI cricket

After Stokes’ retirement, Australia Test opener Usman Khawaja claimed that ODI cricket is ‘dying a slow death’ because of T20s. He suggested a move towards 40 overs, but context is the need of the hour.

“50 overs is just that little bit too long now. Take out that little middle bit, you’d get to 25 overs and you’d look up and ‘oh crap, there’s only 15 overs left, let’s go again’,” he said to ABC Sport.

England all-rounder Moeen Ali echoed those thoughts, with action needed to be taken to keep the format alive.

“At the moment it’s not sustainable in my opinion,” said Moeen in August.

“Something has to be done because I fear losing the 50-over format in a couple of years because it’s almost like the long, boring one, if that makes sense. It’s almost like you’ve got T20s, you’ve got the Test matches which are great and then the 50 overs is just in the middle – there’s no importance given to it at the moment.”

Others including R Ashwin have also had their say. Trent Boult gave up his New Zealand contract to play in more leagues. With the 2023-2027 Future Tours Programme containing 281 ODIs in the next five years, we may see a situation where a number of multiple-format players decide on whether they still wish to compete in 50-over cricket after the 2023 World Cup in India.

Charbel Coorey
Charbel Coorey
Charbel is the owner & founder of cricblog.net, based in Sydney, Australia. He started the website to fulfill his love for the game of cricket. Charbel has also been featured on other publications including OP India, Times of India, and The Roar, among others. For any story tips or questions, you can contact Charbel at charbelcoorey@cricblog.net.

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