Test cricket used to be cricket’s bread and butter, though the traditional format of the game is unfortunately going through a process of slow death.
Even though there are ten nations playing Test cricket, it seems that only four to five teams are playing enough Test cricket.
The rest are either not playing enough of it or are just not technically capable of playing the game at the highest level.
While many experts may blame the rise of T20 or the fact that Test cricket is not played at the night time, the root causes of the format’s decline are quite different.
All you have to do is unfold the results of Test matches in recent times to find two main factors.
Inability to play abroad
The term ‘home sweet home’ is far more applicable to teams playing Test cricket these days. There have been many instances in past six to seven years where a touring team, even stronger teams like England, Australia and India, have been mercilessly whitewashed by the home team.
Losing is not a problem but the way the teams have lost is a matter of concern. In recent times, South Africa’s mere surrender to India, India’s 4-0 losses to England and Australia, and Australia’s cluelessness against India in 2013 have been some of the glaring examples.
Visiting teams have been unable to play in alien conditions and it has killed the contest. There is nothing more enjoyable than the absorbing days of Test cricket where two teams fiercely compete against each other and the state of the match swings like a pendulum.
But due to the increasing inability of players to play away from home, the quality of Test cricket has dropped.
Widening gap between upper-ranked and lower-ranked teams
When the West Indies toured Down Under for a three-match series in 2015-16, most Windies fans were not annoyed by the 2-0 loss.
Instead, most annoying was the massive gap in quality between the two teams. The West Indies’ performance was so sub-par that it didn’t feel like a contest was even happening.
No wonder the matches were boring, they extremely one-sided.
Similarly, the recently concluded Test series between England and Sri Lanka was a lop-sided affair that once again highlighted that lower-ranked teams are just not technically capable of competing with the better teams.
That is ultimately leading to an uncertain future for Test cricket.
Thus, the technical and temperamental inability of players to apply themselves in tough conditions and situations is responsible for the decline of Test cricket.
Niranjan Deodhar
Roar Pro
Perhaps the only way forward to save Test Cricket or Cricket in particular is to increase the number of teams actively playing Cricket. With only four to five teams playing genuine Test Cricket, Test Cricket is going through a process of stagnation where same teams are competing against each other more often than not and this is taking the spice out of the contest. Apart from being just a 90-minute game, the reason why Football is popular is the massive number of teams playing the game. So, ICC as a global body, curbing the vested interests should look to promote the game worldwide. The teams like Ireland, Afghanistan should be given more opportunities to develop their game by making them play against good opponents on a regular basis before giving them the Test Status. As of now, International T20 Cricket is the medicine and emerging teams like Ireland a new ray of hope. Drafting in more teams to play competitive cricket is the only foresighted solution if we want to save our beautiful game.
Johnno
Guest
Steve Maybe, Golf Majors which take 4-days for a result, but that is only 4 tournaments a year. Other golf tournaments get ignored except for the Ryder cup/president's cup etc. And I've never met anyone watch 4 days of gold straight even the masters. Most people who watch Golf the Masters etc only watch the last 9-holes on day 4 on sunday.
steve
Guest
Apart from The Ashes series, I think Test Cricket is just about dead. The nature of the modern world has seen to it that no one wants to wait five days for what is often a boring ass draw anyway. Is there another sport around that lasts for five friggin days? TBH, after watching T20 cricket, I even find one day games boring now.
Paul Nicholls
Roar Guru
I think you are right Johnno, especially your first point. It's catching too - I didn't read your 2nd and 3rd points because my attention span is so short these days.
craig swanson
Guest
Johnno. Reckon you have got things round about. Respect is out the door on Ashes tours as I have clearly pointed out. How is playing against a handful of county second division teams that are performing middle of the road in their comp, anywhere near adequate preparation for the most keenly fought test series on the calendar? That also goes for when the Poms tour here. What happened to the old days when one of our leading Shield teams were proudly chosen to tackle the touring side? These days the warm up opponents are usually supplied from our National Performance Squad or a state Second X1 side.
The Bush
Roar Guru
It'd be interesting to see studies about the actual interest in test cricket in all countries. Australia frequently does these studies and I presume England does to. Why don't the administrators find out if there fan base even wants test cricket? If they do, as the Australian one's do, then find out what their fan base wants (day/night, better competition, cheaper tickets etc).
Johnno
Guest
Are you bothered if only the "Big 3" stay playing Test-cricket. Crowds for Test-cricket in India are usually crap, but there so rich they can afford to run there test-cricket side at a loss. And they have 1-Billion people anyway so can always find a market to watch there games on TV e.g. tours of Australia/England. With Pakistan and IPL stuff, agreed it's India's loss. But there's now plenty of other T-20 tournaments Pakistan players can turn out in. And anyway I thought they have now started there own T-20 tournament.
BrainsTrust
Guest
Test Cricket is earning massive amounts of money these days compared to the old days. That money is earnt primarily by India followed by England and Australia. These three countries will pay their cricketers very well to play Test cricket. They also make sure no one else gets a share of the loot. So its millionaires playing paupers, then even worse the poorer countries players are paid more to avoid test cricket. Pakistan players can;t play in the IPL so they resort to match fixing to make money. If you play in the IPL, if you don;t perform then goodbye to your next contract., in test cricket the only performance bonus or prize money on offer is from the bookies for losing.
Johnno
Guest
Ashes seems to be the only test-cricket tour, that is shown the proper respect(proper touring games both when we travel to England and they come out to OZ). Outside of that the respect shown to other touring teams coming to OZ is quite lame in proper preparation.
The Bush
Roar Guru
All countries are guilty of it, but you're right, it ruins any chance the touring sides have. A touring team should be entitled to a handful of games in real conditions against quality opposition. In Australia's case this means a minimum of a full strength Shield Team and for England a full strength, top division county side.
craig swanson
Guest
If there is a decline in test cricket it could be down to the lack of respect given to it by those running our game. I refer to poor preparation given to a test series.Take last year's Ashes when the touring Aussies were given a mere three warm up games before the first test and, from memory, only one other between tests. All were against inferior second division sides which provided very little stiff opposition going into what is one of the hardest fought test series for any Australian or Englishman. Compare this to earlier in the century when touring teams played all English county sides plus a couple of invitational sides thruout the course of the series...some 34 games. This gave the tourists the advantage of playing in all weather and pitch conditions which primed them for the test series. I am not naive enough to expect those days to return given the incredibly tight schedule these days with white ball cricket dominating the cricket year. There does,however, need to be some middle ground to be given.Test cricket has to be once again handed the respect it deserves as the purist form of our great game.
Johnno
Guest
Lots of reasons: 1)-Modern world, youth society(the next generation) the majority don't have the patience to wait 5-days for a result 2)It's quit boring test cricket is becoming 5-days of play within an existing match, it's hard to sustain that interest 3)Cost: Test-cricket is not cheap to develop. It's an expensive sport to get good at and maintain good at, especially when your 1st-calss domestic comp makes no money e.g. sheffield shield/NZ first class cricket/not sure if county cricket makes money, but Sri Lank's 1st division for example makes no money neither does Pakistan's etc. Where as T-20 is much more financially viable to make profit and invest in talent, In other words it's easier and cheaper to become a T-20 player than a Test-cricketer. And poor countries like Bangladesh/Sri Lanka/Pakistan/Zims/the west indies islands simply don't have the cash to sustain 1st class cricket, let alone adequate junior facilities which all cost a fortune, plus the coaching. Long-form cricket is not a cheap sport full stop same applies to horse polo and Golf and swimming and athletics and rowing. Soccer is cheap, and T-20 is way cheaper than long form cricket, 7's rugby is cheap too, basketball you can play outdoors to it's cheaper than cricket etc. NZ I worry about there 1st-class cricket future. Long-term the only 3 cricket nations I see being financially viable to have test-cricket as a sport are Australia/England/India, the "Big 3". The ICC have basically been taken over by the BCCI and the Big 3, and the smaller nations are getting less of the cricket profit, so test-cricket is digging it's own grave thanks to the "Big-3". Should Test-cricket fans have an attitude of if you don't like it, buzz off and we will enjoy our test-cricket. Sorry a head in the sane attitude by the old middle age men fans won't cut it, and test cricket will die like a terminally ill cancer patient, the only point is "when" not "if". Test cricket is in crisis and changes are needed e.g. make it more like T-20-coloured uniforms/disco dancing girl cheerleaders/disco bails/substitutions/power plays/more pink ball test/haveing players miched up/free-hits/all sorts of ways to funk it up to cool young people, not boring middle-aged sods who wear lofas and like collared shirts, and don't like the LOL generation. of youth. In other words hand the keys to Gen-Y the youth and kill off the fuddy duddy silly sacred traditions of test-cricket which are many and appeal to the youth or test cricket will die, and be reduced to old middle-aged men talking about the "good old days" like our grandparents telling war stories.
Niranjan Deodhar
Roar Pro
Yes but back then, the only form of the game that was played was Test Cricket. So, players were trained to play Test Cricket and as a result number of Test playing nations gradually increased as the time passed by. But in modern era, thee is so much of cricket going along and with all the T20 cricket around, players aren't that motivated to learn the skills that are essential to play Test Cricket. As of now, the weaker teams are becoming weaker, existing stronger teams look vulnerable as well. Except few teams, other teams are playing fewer Test Matches , so its difficult for them to improve and hence I fear about the future of Test Cricket.
Anthony Condon
Roar Pro
I can show you a letter to the editor from the mid 1970s and another from the late 1940s that say almost the exact same things you're saying here. Nothing is new in test cricket.
Anthony Condon
Roar Pro
1. Test cricket isn't dying. Attendances and ratings prove this. 2. There is no historical difference between home ground advantage or the gap between the top and the bottom. It's the way it's always been. You learn on the grounds you grow up on, and so are better in your home country. The best test team in the world has always been a lot better than the worst. The big historical difference is the number of teams with test status, but if you look at the games Australia played against Ceylon in the 30s you'll see a much bigger gap than what we just saw against the West Indies.
craig swanson
Guest
What about the captain of the touring team being allowed to determine pitch type or alternatively being given first dibs at batting first or fielding. Then this home town advantage aspect of test cricket would be a thing of the past.
mds1970
Roar Guru
When I was growing up, the West Indies were the dominant force in Test cricket. But as we saw last summer, those days are long gone. As we also saw last summer, many of the best West Indian cricketers came to Australia; not to play Test cricket but the Big Bash. The economic resources of West Indian cricket can't compete with the T20 circuit, the prime-time TV dollars speak loudly. Pakistan, unable to play at home and having to play on road pitches in the Arab desert in front of 20 people, is surely ripe for being raided by T20 franchises. It's the rise of club against country; and Test cricket doesn't have the economic firepower to compete. I can easily see a situation in 30 years where only Australia, England and India will play Test cricket. Elsewhere the crowds aren't there, and long daytime days don't bring in the TV ratings that a prime-time T20 franchise league does.
Simoc
Guest
It's long dead. ex Cricketers like it most because it brings some a career and others an excuse to get away from the wife for a day. Tests do ok between Australia and England.
Jack
Guest
Strange article. These things arent the reasons test cricket is "dying" as you put it (A theory many dispute but that's another story) these things are the symptoms of the decline. You've actually got no answers at all, just observations of the effects of the root causes. What's actually the point of this?