Grumpy Mole

So, I admit I’ve moaned and groaned a lot.  I’ve been anti the Hundred for a long time because I really felt it wasn’t the best way forward.  Because it’s my opinion that events have been mishandled by the ECB since 2005 and the loss of cricket to pay channels.  The failure to trademark T20, the failure to get at least some cricket on free to air…and then the decision that the only way forward was to invent a whole new game and add it to an already crowded schedule, with seeming disregard for lifelong cricket fans and at the same time taking a massive gamble.

Anyways, I’ve kinda covered this ground already.  The Hundred has started and though I have missed most of the games, I’ve watched some and quite enjoyed the experience (minus the graphics, which the kids seem to love).  I’ve bought tickets to the game next Wednesday at Edgbaston.  I’m particularly happy that the Women’s game seems to really be benefiting from the extra exposure and it’s great to see new fans getting involved, particularly families with kids.

Many people had reservations to begin with, mostly for perfectly legitimate reasons already covered in this blog.  However, Twittersville is getting a little nasty of late, with a rift between 2 sides with very opposing views.  I’ve witnessed trolls, private messages from people unhappy with my Tweets, petty arguments between commentators and counties and many more examples to suggest that all is not right in the cricketing world.  Now I’m not for a minute suggesting it’s a war zone out there but it certainly feels as though if the ECB had plotted a different course things could have been a little less…narky?

 The whole of cricket and the general public could have been swept along in a wave of excitement this summer, without feelings of disenchantment, without accusations of cricket fans being ‘resistant to change’ or of other fans being ‘reckless in their forward thinking’.  At the end of the day, in the situation we are in it’s probably time to meet somewhere in the middle, to try and support cricket as a whole, regardless of format.  To mend the rifts a little, as it’s surely not great for cricket as a whole?  Obviously not everyone will do this and not everyone likes every form of the game but every little helps and a touch of civility goes a long way!  I will continue to moan less and support more.  Whether The Hundred is a success or a failure it’s best to try and do the right thing for crickets sake!