Ravichandran Ashwin, on Wednesday (December 31), listed the issues that are working against ODI cricket’s popularity. For one, the former India spinner blamed the International Cricket Council (ICC) for diluting the format into a T20-style game, with batting-friendly conditions, making it unsuitable for cricketers like MS Dhoni, who liked to build the innings and then start hitting at the death.
ODIs shifted from a single ball to two new balls from each end in 2011, which affected reverse swing and kept the ball harder for longer. Fielding restrictions also evolved over the years, going from two fielders outside the circle in the opening overs to the current system of two outfielders in the first 10 overs, four in the middle phase, and five at the death, significantly influencing batting and bowling tactics.
“One-day cricket, once upon a time, was an amazing format because it gave a player like MS Dhoni who would take singles for 10-15 overs before he went berserk at the end. You don’t have players like that (Dhoni) anymore and there isn’t any requirement to play like that, as you are playing with two new balls and five fielders inside circle,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
Bilateral ODIs are being squeezed between the traditional appeal of the Tests and the modern interest in the short-and-quick T20I format. The ICC has tried to tweak rules – now two new balls are used only until the 34th over, which has brought some reverse swing back – and there’s also talk about bringing back the Super League, which gave a bit more context to bilateral matches.
But Ashwin still feels that the ICC has stagnated interest by organising one tournament – ODI World Cup, T20 World Cup or the Champions Trophy – almost every year.
“The ODI format has become redundant and to top it, ICC needs to see how they are conducting these World Cups. Every year, there is an ICC tournament for revenue generation pattern, but then look at how FIFA is doing it. There are leagues happening and they do their World Cup once in every four years. The World Cup has value as it’s a marquee tournament. Too many bilaterals, too many formats, too many World Cups, so it’s a little bit of an overkill,” he feels.