New Delhi, Nov 13 As Australia grapples with a tight international schedule, cricket legend Mark Waugh foresees a future where One-Day International (ODI) cricket is largely reserved for major tournaments like the ICC World Cup and Champions Trophy.
Waugh, reflecting on Australia’s recent 1-2 ODI series loss to Pakistan with a second-string side, has voiced a realistic yet bittersweet prediction: that the traditional 50-over format may be squeezed out in favour of the shorter T20 format and Test matches outside of high-stakes competitions.
The Australian side, missing star Test players Pat Cummins, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood, struggled in the absence of its senior players. After Cummins’ heroics in the first ODI helped clinch a close win, his subsequent rest, along with other Test stars, left an inexperienced lineup that suffered back-to-back crushing losses, marked by poor batting display’s which saw the WC winners being dismissed for just 163 and 140 runs respectively in the second and third ODI respectively.
It was Australia’s first ODI home series defeat to Pakistan since 2002, and the performance spurred cricket commentators Ian Healy and Michael Clarke to suggest that Cricket Australia may be losing interest in low-stakes bilateral series.
For Waugh, one of Australia’s greatest ODI players with 18 international centuries, the format's dilution through bilateral series has become apparent.
“I think you’re spot on. The World Cup and the Champions Trophies are still great events. The last World Cup in India was an amazing tournament, not just because Australia won. I still think it’s a fantastic tournament and it’s a great format because it combines a bit of T20 and Test match cricket in the 50-over game. You don’t want to lose the 50-over game completely," Waugh told news.com.au.
But with an ever-packed calendar, particularly with T20 leagues and tournaments expanding globally, Waugh believes the value of 50-over bilateral series may be dwindling.
“But given the scheduling of all these T20 tournaments around now and with scheduling, it’s squeezing out 50-over bilateral series. Obviously it’s a great thing to play for your country, you don’t want to disrespect that. But by the same token, you want to be playing for something that’s a bit more than just a three-game series thrown in the middle of all these other tournaments and series. I think it will get phased out. I think that’s probably the way to go,” added Waugh.
Currently, the ODI format’s future may lie in exclusive events like the ICC World Cup and Champions Trophy. Waugh envisions a model where bilateral ODIs could serve as warm-ups to larger tournaments, but in between, they may lack staying power.
“When you get towards these big tournaments like a World Cup, then you might introduce some more games as lead-ups,” he added. “But...the three-match series – great for Pakistan obviously to win...but I don’t think it’s going to be the highlight of the cricket season,” he concluded.
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