Predictions on the future of cricket

[Richard Rash]

I am just wandering over the next twenty years or so what do you see haapining and changing in the cricketing world. Quicker bowlers?, Better batsman?, Higher strike rates? New Teams? A two tier test system?

And which countries do you see doing well in twenty years time? Do you think Australia will continue to rule as the number 1 team in the world or will somebody have dethroned them by then?

 

[SpaceMonkey]

lets hope for a little more bowler friendly wickets for one.

 

[Langeveldt]

Give it 25 years

1) The splitting of the ICC into a Subcontinental and a World board

2) Widespread corruption as the global bodies completely lose any grip they once had, and players actions are dictated by their sponsers and "insiders" on the gambling circuit.

3) Complete dominance by Australia, New Zealand and England. Zimbabwe lose test and ODI status. South Africa and West Indies plummet to total obscurity as all their players play county and state cricket. By now, all WI youngsters are playing american sports. Kenyan cricket disappears ftotally from the map, and are replaced by a talented and cash happy Chinese side.

4) The abolition of the five day test match, and the prominance of Twenty20, including a highly succesful few world cups. All won by Australia

5) The abolition of the traditional round armed bowling action, in favour for a run to the crease and javelin throw towards the stumps..

And i'll probably be elsewhere playing badminton, baseball, or running long distance.

 

[Crazy Sam]

i think australia will continue to dominate over the next 20 years, with clarke the next captain after ponting. I think zimbabwe and bangladesh will lose test status [which should happen now really].

 

[masterblaster]

Give it 25 years

1) The splitting of the ICC into a Subcontinental and a World board

2) Widespread corruption as the global bodies completely lose any grip they once had, and players actions are dictated by their sponsers and "insiders" on the gambling circuit.

3) Complete dominance by Australia, New Zealand and England. Zimbabwe lose test and ODI status. South Africa and West Indies plummet to total obscurity as all their players play county and state cricket. By now, all WI youngsters are playing american sports. Kenyan cricket disappears ftotally from the map, and are replaced by a talented and cash happy Chinese side.

4) The abolition of the five day test match, and the prominance of Twenty20, including a highly succesful few world cups. All won by Australia

5) The abolition of the traditional round armed bowling action, in favour for a run to the crease and javelin throw towards the stumps..

And i'll probably be elsewhere playing badminton, baseball, or running long distance.

Man, that paints an awfully bleak picture.

 

[Langeveldt]

Man, that paints an awfully bleak picture.

Yeah, afraid so! I can't see it any other way, its been freefall for a good few years now..

 

[Scaly piscine]

Scotland to gain Test status in 10 years, massively paid Indian stars choose not to tour Scotland because of the risk of their fingers getting cold. Fringe players take the said stars' place and beat the 'brave' Scots by an innings and 200 runs with Gavin Hamilton drastically improving his career Test figures by taking 1-123 and scoring 8 not out.

 

[BoyBrumby]

Two things in my crystal ball:

1) India to become dominant. Has to happen eventually, sheer weight of population.

2) ODI status for the US. It's the market the ICC wants to crack most & with the immigration from the sub-continent there'll be more of a grass-roots cricket culture.

 

[Jono]

I don't think it'll be as bleak and dark as Langveldt has pointed out, but I do think that Kenya are as good as done, and Zimbabwe and Bangladesh will fall further and further due to mismanagement and people just not caring.

I also see 20-20 becoming extremely popular, and dominating the cricket world with people with low attention spans (Note, this isn't a crack at 20-20 cricket, but rather a crack at what would happen if it took over from the long game, or even ODIs).

 

[andyc]

believe it or not, i think china will rise to at least odi status by 2011 or so-- the government has already started telling schools they're going to teach it, and once they've set their minds upon something, they don't stop until they get it.
other than that, i think australia will lose some of its dominance over everybody else, and that, like everyone else has said, 20/20 cricket will become popular and might possibly replace odi's.

 

[J.Coney]

the traditional odi game will change and it wont be 20 20 a version is being pushed called 3 innings cricket. china and ameica will play a big part of cricket in 20 years time. 5 day cricket will be reduced to 3 day's, the magic number in baseball is 3 hence the reason 3 will be used in cricket, the quicker icc except that the quicker the game becomes global.

 

[BoyBrumby]

I also see 20-20 becoming extremely popular, and dominating the cricket world with people with low attention spans (Note, this isn't a crack at 20-20 cricket, but rather a crack at what would happen if it took over from the long game, or even ODIs).

I can see your point, but (in a rare burst of optimism) I like to think of 20/20 as a Trojan Horse. Give the kids a quick fix of excitement & then slowly get 'em hooked on the harder stuff!

Soon enough they'll be taking out subscriptions to obscure Asian satellite TV channels to watch 4 ODIs in Zimbabwe just like the rest of us!

 

[Jono]

I can see your point, but (in a rare burst of optimism) I like to think of 20/20 as a Trojan Horse. Give the kids a quick fix of excitement & then slowly get 'em hooked on the harder stuff!

I hope you're right mate.

 

[Neil Pickup]

Stop bloody whinging!

 

[Camel56]

IMO australia will come back to the field. When their older player retire, and they have a few of them at the moment, i think world cricket will be a lot more competitve. Here's to hoping it happens and hoping the game thrives in the future.

 

[marc71178]

India to become dominant. Has to happen eventually, sheer weight of population.

Why does it have to happen?

Population hasn't made a difference in any other sport.

 

[BoyBrumby]

Why does it have to happen?

Population hasn't made a difference in any other sport.

Perhaps I should've said "active participation" then.

But population does make a difference, it's no coincidence that the weakest Footballing nations in Europe (Your San Marinos, Andorras, Luxembourgs) are the least populace. Sure, there are other factors to consider; the economy & education too. But you can't discount it.

 

[marc71178]

By that note, how come India and China are useless at Football then?

 

[Neil Pickup]

State funding and organisation.

If India can get the whole 1.2 billion people organised and with all getting the same exposure as the rest of the Western world, then they'll become the best (barring any endemic racial superiority traits, e.g. height, fast twitch fibre, etc, plus affinity to pitches - until there are pitches with life and movement on a regular basis, they will struggle away) - see China in the Olympics and the USSR/Eastern Bloc during the Cold War.

However, that's a long way off and it's questionable if it will even happen in the current economic climate.

 

[BoyBrumby]

The grinding poverty of much of India notwithstanding, they still have about 300 million people living in conditions broadly akin to those of the first world. Thats a huge potential player base.

But, as Neil points out (it's a Geography degree, right?!? ) there are other factors. There's a sports science thesis waiting to be written on why Muslims make better fast bowlers than Hindus or Sikhs for a start!