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Modern technology means we are getting closer to the game than ever before – but like The Peddler in Aladdin says, it’s gotten “too close, a little too close”.
Last night, Virat Kohli gave Steve Smith one hell of a send-off for talking to the commentators throughout his innings.
WATCH THE INTERVIEW AND SEND-OFF IN THE PLAYER ABOVE
And frankly, it was hard not to agree with him.
Bombarded with a seemingly endless torrent of inane and directionless questions from Mark Nicholas (“What’s going through your head right now?”, “How’s it feeling out there?) – Smith seemed visibly annoyed, and then soon after, was out.
It’s not fair to apportion the blame wholly on the interview, but international cricket is decided at the margins and distractions like this pull your focus from where it needs to be.
Twenty20 cricket requires an intense level of concentration because the stakes of every decision are amplified.
It’s no longer the ‘hit-and-giggle it was in the early days, and the rules around commentary need to adapt as well.
Maybe if the viewing public was getting fascinating insights from Smith, then we could justify it.
But we’re not.
We’re getting tedious answers to tedious questions because we’re talking with a player who is understandably trying to focus on winning an international sports match instead of giving compelling answers.
Throughout the Big Bash, Channel 10 were able to strike a happy medium between talking to players on the field and respecting the players’ privacy.
It should be pretty simple: talk to the mic’d up player when he’s fielding on the fence, batting at the non-striker’s end or in-between overs – but this grating, cringeworthy obsession with having a constant dialogue needs to stop.
It undermines the credibility of the game, worsens the quality of play and detracts from the viewing experience.
Sometimes, less is more.
@Channel9 Don't speak to the Aust. captain when he's batting! Steve Smith out seconds after being forced to speak to channel 9 commentators!
— Daniel Gunn (@DanielGunn) January 26, 2016
Whilst we try to bring the viewer into the contest. We can't forget it is a contest. Smith wasn't comfortable and Kohli knew it.
— Nathan Buckley (@ncb_cfc) January 26, 2016
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