Cricket Australia CEO Todd Greenberg has shared his concern about Test matches finishing too quickly as he said shorter games are not good for the sport as well as finances. His comments came after first day of the Boxing Day Test at the MCG, where 20 wickets fell on a single day.
A record crowd of 94,199 fans had turned up on day one and day two was also sold out with the match finishing within two days.
Speaking on SEN before the start of day two, Greenberg was asked about falling of 20 wickets in one day. “The short answer for that in my opinion is yes. As mesmerising and fascinating and enjoyable as it was to watch as a fan, we want Test cricket clearly to go for longer,” Greenberg said.
Greenberg then explained the business problem shorter Tests are creating. “A simple phrase I’d use is short Tests are bad for business. I can’t be much more blunt than that. So I would like to see a slightly broader balance between the bat and the ball. I thought yesterday slightly favoured the ball. The batters have some ownership in some of that, it’s not all around the pitch, but we’ve got some challenges.”
Several former players have also criticised the MCG pitch. When asked if CA would step in more during pitch preparation, Greenberg said, “Historically we have taken a hands-off approach in all of our wicket preparation and allowed the staff and the conditions and those characteristics to be presented,” but added, “But it’s hard not to get more involved when you see the impact on the sport, particularly commercially.”
Answering to whether CA is already facing big losses, Greenberg said, “I didn’t sleep well last night, put it that way.”
Also Read: Is the MCG pitch too spicy? Do pace-friendly pitches come under the hammer as much as raging turners?
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