Pietersen calls for spicing up Test cricket
Former England star lights up Pataudi Memorial Lecture
Former England captain Kevin Pietersen on Tuesday suggested various methods like day-night Tests, equal pay, marketing and innovation, and cheaper tickets to reinvigorate Test cricket.
Speaking at the 6th MAK Pataudi Memorial Lecture, the 37-year-old, who also became the first non-Indian cricketer to deliver the lecture, insisted on making the five-day format the pinnacle of cricket but argued that every format must be respected.
“Having played every form of cricket in every corner of the cricketing globe, I remain 100 per cent convinced that the five-day Test remains the supreme form of the game,” the 37-year-old said.
Also praising the shortest format of the game, Pietersen said: “Twenty-20 provides the thrill, the noise, the speed and — no little genius — it has taken fielding to a new level and has redefined batting.”
However, he refused to give up on Test cricket. “Let’s make Test cricket a spectacle. Garnish it with colour and fireworks. Fill the grounds. Play in the evenings. Give the umpires microphones to broadcast to the spectators,” he suggested.
“Let’s throw equal marketing clout behind the Test game before we succumb to the lazy assumption that Twenty-20 rules,” he proposed, besides backing the idea of a World Test Championship. He also backed handsome pay for cricketers featuring in the five-day games, which would give them financial security.
The former dasher didn’t forget to wish luck to the Afghanistan team, who are all set to debut in the longest format of the game against India today.
“The squad, the management, and all those who helped you get here, you guys are sitting on the very edge of history. The doom mongers say this is a dying form of the game, but you have it within your grasp to keep it alive. You are representing a population of 36 million people.”