Fast-food format ‘hard to stomach’

TWO of Test cricket’s leading stars have expressed fears that some of the intricacies of the sport will be lost as playing time is crunched.

In the week that the ECB revealed plans for a skinnier version of the game than Twenty20 — a 100-ball innings marketed as The Hundred from 2020 — England’s most prolific bowl er, James Anderson, and India batsman Cheteshwar Pujara lamented the prospect of future generations not mastering skills that have served them so well in the longest format.

Anderson, whose 531 wickets places him fifth in Test history, believes the art of swing bowling could be archived while Pujara has preached the virtues of crease occupation during testing times.

‘As a cricket fan, once I’ve retired I hope there are still really competitive Test series around,’ Anderson (right) said. ‘ Test cricket is why I fell in love with the game and I’m sure there are lots like me. There is so much to love about the longer form and I want to be able to watch new players come through and challenge records.

‘ The thought of there not being any skilful swing bowlers emerging troubles me. It’s such an amazing thing to watch when a bowler can move it both ways through the air, and the batsman is left guessing.

‘The main point for me is that if you encourage younger people to lean so heavily towards white- ball cricket, those skills will get lost. I can’t stomach the thought of someone growing up wanting to bowl four overs as their limit. Especially when I consider that I could bowl to someone for four overs and be looking to get them out in the fifth or sixth over.

‘It takes time to get opponents out on a flat deck in difficult conditions to bowl in and there is the potential for the discipline of crafting a spell or setting up a batsman to disappear.

‘That mental battle between players is as enthralling as the actual skill of bowling and the batsman trying to play the ball. That’s something that grabbed me at a young age.’ Pujara, who is playing for Yorkshire ahead of trying to combat Anderson in India’s Test series here later this summer, agreed. ‘Skills are not being lost completely but the shorter format is taking over,’ he said. ‘Modern-day batsmen want to play shots from early on and strike rates are going up but there’s still enough room for the guys with the right technique and temperament, because in challenging conditions playing your shots is no good, you need to assess the pitch and the situation.’

Never was this more evident than earlier this year when Pujara took 54 balls to get off the mark in Johannesburg. It was partly in reaction to the loss of two wickets by India, who, courtesy of Pujara’s application, went on to win.

‘There should still be enough room in the game for youngsters working on technique and temperament,’ Pujara said.’