The abrupt termination of the West Indies tour to India has
led to the anticipated consequences with WICB scrambling for fire-fighting
measures and BCCI seeking maximal claim of monetary loss. The future of the
players in international cricket remains hazily unclear, some wondering to the
extent of their participation in the World Cup early next year. Few sane voices
are suggesting all concerned parties to restore talks with a calm mindset and
resolve the issue sans victimization. No follower of the game would like West Indian
players to be isolated in the overall frame, but things would have been much
better had the events unfolded in a different manner.
A lesser significant aspect of this troubled series is that
of impromptu scheduling modifications and an inflexible approach to a foreseen
weather affected match. Spontaneous changes in tournament schedules is not uncommon
in the Indian cricket set-up; the recent example being that of the IPL
semifinal & final venue alterations midway through the league. Though such
moments have their respective background stories and are minor enough to be
neglected, it subtly emphasizes the need for greater professionalism &
unflawed planning. The thought to shed light on this facet is not merely with
the perspective of the present moment but to emphasize the greater paucity of
mapping the popularity of Indian cricket with consistent quality cricket.
Despite unprompted following for the game in India, the administrators
have been inclusive in recent years with respect to spectator interests’ viz. newer
stadiums are audience friendly, most match-day berth bookings are available
online, test matches are held over weekends and almost all the ODIs are
day-nighters. What seems to be lacking is the appreciable enthusiasm in
organizing bilateral home international series’ with a periodic frequency,
which could inculcate a tradition in the process. The focus on selling cricket
in India has quietly narrowed down to IPL (& CLT20 to some extent), leaving
international cricket on its own perpetual progress. It is not difficult to
understand why that is the current trend but purists and ardent lovers of the
sport would love to have an assured phase of home (international) season every
year.
Sample this - since the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (2012-13)
[which ended in March 2013], India has hosted only 2 tests (the ones vividly
remembered for Tendulkar’s final tests) and seemingly won’t host one until
October 2015! In this period 3 limited overs series (1 vs Australia, 2 vs West
Indies) and only 1 T20I have been organised at home. You could argue about the
lack of space/time given 3 away tours in this phase and the unexpected
curtailing of the West Indies series, but cannot justify the lack of intrinsic intent
in allocating time for home internationals. Things at helm in the ICC have
undergone a paradigm shift this year and the new FTP has guaranteed longish
bilateral tours with England & Australia. Curtailed tours against South
Africa (home & away) too have been included. There is a perceivable change
in the way BCCI is addressing this aspect and hopefully the scheduling cycle post
the 2015 World Cup has better prospects for the fans.
Reports of administrators mulling over a Boxing-day like
feature test match have been floating, but strangely nothing seems to have
yielded materialistically. India’s cricket season commences in October and goes
on till March. The festival of lights comes generally between mid-October &
mid-November and weather too changes its tracks during this phase. A majority
of the working population is laid-off during the Diwali week and school/college
going students have an academic break. A constructive confluence of all these
factors could be worked out to fill the apparent void for a marquee cricket
day/week in the scheme of things.
Numerable examples in recent history suggest
that if context and quality resonate, the particular match and its memories
linger in the mind longer, irrespective of the format. While it’s not clearly
apparent, on-ground test cricket following is decaying gradually across venues.
Such a pattern can subsequently lead to decline of this format as most events
in today’s era are driven by commercial success. Preserving this format, even if
for the sake of it is paramount for the sport to exist and hence even baby
steps in this direction can directly strengthen the overall framework of the
game. A test series revolving around something like a ‘Diwali-test’ can be the potential
solution to both the objectives. Here’s wishing that a better calendar for home
internationals inclusive of a marquee phase sees light at the end of the
tunnel!
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