Published: Jul 27, 2022, 07:47 PM (IST)
Edited: Jul 27, 2022, 07:53 PM (IST)
New Delhi: The future of ODI cricket is one of the hottest debates going on among cricket fanatics. Ben Stokes announced his retirement from ODI cricket saying that playing all formats of the game is very challenging and his body is not in a state to take the stress of all playing formats. Many experts believe that Ben Stokes has set a template for the other players to follow. They believe that given the money involved in T20 cricket and Test cricket being the ultimate format, players may choose to quit ODI cricket to prolong their careers.
However, ICC chief executive Geoff Allardice believes that the ODIs are not losing significance as the countries are still scheduling a healthy number of ODIs in their FTPs
“I think at this stage there is some discussion, not specifically about ODIs, but about the mix of formats within the calendar,” Allardice told a video conference. “Countries have been, in their FTPs, are still scheduling a healthy number of ODIs as well. “So in the FTP, I don’t think you’ll see any significant change to the number of ODIs or the proportion of ODIs as being planned,” he added.
Allardice also said that there is a need to strike a balance between domestic competitions and international assignments so that players don’t get burned out. “Each of them has to manage that balance between domestic competitions, their international schedule and the management of their players. “Each of those boards is in slightly different situation. So there isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to that balancing issue.”
Recently South Africa cancelled their ODI series against Australia as it clashed with the launch of their domestic T20 league. ODI cricket certainly is struggling to match up to the pace of T20 cricket, but whether or not it has come to a stage where it may lose all significance is still to be seen. Many experts like Shoaib Akhtar and Ravi Shastri have asked the ICC to trim the ODI cricket to 40 overs to safeguard its future.
