Trolled!

And so it’s almost upon us.  The Hundred begins soon and the advertising campaigns ramp it up to the max.   Bright, garish, flashing colours with young, big name stars taking centre stage and the release of a baffling list of laws that I wouldn’t even want to attempt to get to grips with, despite the ECB claiming how easy the game will be to understand.  White cards, removal of the idea of “overs” even though “over-rates” were mentioned in the advertising bumf, the toss taking place near the DJ, time outs etc etc.

 

Despite my annoyance at all of the above, I’m writing this particular blog post because today I encountered my first troll on social media, relating to my opinions on the Hundred.  Now, I understand that I have very strong opinions and these are likely to rub some people up the wrong way.  However, my views and opinions are based on knowledge of cricket from reading countless articles (and living cricket as much as possible), my love of cricket from a young age and my belief that, frankly, cricket needs very little fixing.  I’m not going to let one troll who simply hurled a little abuse in my direction get to me.  It’s easy enough to block people on Twittersville, but it’s important to add a little to my previous post on the Hundred just to explain my current feelings.  I tried to do this on Twitter but after compiling a lengthy thread I managed to delete whole darn thing.

 

Cricket has 3 excellent formats.  Test Match cricket (the pinnacle for me) is very much reliant on the success of County Cricket – a nursery for young English potential.  ODI International cricket is in rude health, with England World Cup holders and capable of beating Pakistan with a 2^nd strength 11.  50 over county cricket isn’t doing great but is an excellent format for cricket fans who have a day off and fancy a full day at the cricket and is important for players to gain experience.  The T20 Blast is a superb tournament that was becoming more and more popular, particularly with younger generations.  It would possibly benefit from a bit of a re-brand and a relatively small amount of advertising money, compared to the money being thrown at the Hundred.  Stick a few of these games on free to air and it’ll have a much bigger following in no time.  We soon go into a T20 World Cup as one of the favourites for the title.

 

They didn’t need to do this.  It’s pure greed on the part of a few very rich men.  The franchise idea has kind of worked in India with the IPL, despite past corruption, but why make this change when so much cricket in England is so well attended.  Why change all the laws, why throw so much money at something to the potential detriment of the game when a few minor changes could have done the business. 

 

There’s a lot of talk about players getting more money…they have the potential to earn in the IPL, in the PSL, the Big Bash and various other comps throughout the year.  Many more chances than ever before.  Don’t get me wrong; I really want cricketers to be successful and well paid.  It’s beneficial to the game and as a result beneficial to my enjoyment.

 

There’s also much discussion about the potential improvements to the women’s game.  Having followed the England team avidly for the last 4-5 years, the multi-format idea is a great one.  The England games are all well attended and the quality of our professional outfit is great to see.  The Super League, though not well attended has been a success and would benefit greatly from more money and advertising.  It’s a slow process but the game is improving year on year.  I’ve conceded previously that the women’s game may benefit more than anything from the Hundred, though it needs careful management with Women taking equal billing

 

Another common argument is that this is not meant for you, it’s meant for the kids and to get non-cricket fans interested in the game, which will eventually filter through to other formats.  What I would say to that is that the laws are a lot different – how will these differences make this transition easy? – and what does the Hundred offer that the T20 Blast doesn’t?

 

One of my biggest concerns is that the fixture schedule is being stretched by this.  T20 Blast has taken a back seat (with less coverage on Sky), County games have been squeezed in around other cricket as an afterthought.  As for 50 over County cricket, i’ve heard next to nothing about this year’s competition.

 

The cricket season is too long, multiformat players have little or no rest between games.  Players are being further stretched by COVID outbreaks and county cricket is already decimated before players bubble for The Hundred.  This has the potential to ruin this cricket season and could have ramifications for the future of the game.

 

As for other positives and negatives (mainly negatives), see my previous post .

 

In conclusion, don’t just hurl abuse at me.  My heart is in the right place (firmly on the side of cricket).  If it’s a success, I’ll hold my hands up and say I was wrong.  But I’m not fond with rich people playing a lottery with my favourite sport.