Sports India

With The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) bowing to the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) demands that the shortest version of the game so far - Twenty20 format – be included in the domestic calendar, the players, who are already overstretched, may feel the additional burden.

Cricketers world over have already voiced their displeasure about ICC’s scheduling of Test and One-Day matches and have been complaining of too much cricket. In fact many of the players, including the Aussies and the South Africans, who are considered as the fittest, have been hit by injuries due to over exposure.

Nearer home, batting ace Sachin Tendulkar, who is considered as one of the fittest Indian cricketers along with his skipper Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif and Irfan Pathan, has not been spared as well and is still recuperating after a major operation.

Even youngsters like Yuvi and Pathan too have had their share of injuries and with the introduction of the Twenty20, the casualties are bound to increase as the workload on the players will certainly double.

The Twenty20 may also help lose spectators interest for Test matches, which according to hardcore cricket followers is still the real thing even though the present day life makes it difficult for a layman to follow the longer version of the game for five long years.

As it is, the Test matches are losing its popularity after the introduction of One-Day matches as it was quite evident in the recent Test series in Asia and in the West Indies where just a hand full of spectators watched the matches in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the West Indies.

With the introduction of Twenty20 format, the Test matches might take a further beating as the spectator gets what he wants (quick results as well as some action) and he need not wait for five long days to see a match end in a tame draw.