4 Day Tests The Way To Go

[Dick Rockett]

I don't even know which word it's filtered there tbh

It's the active form of a verb that also means a small body of flowing water.

 

[Athlai]

It's the active form of a verb that also means a small body of flowing water.

You like the kinky **** too eh?

 

[Dick Rockett]

You like the kinky **** too eh?

Who doesn't??

 

[stephen]

What a terrible idea. Forcing players to play a further 33% each day will lower the quality of the cricket and increase the advantage of batting first.

Part day tickets won't work because except in school holidays only the night session will be attractive.

As a spectator I don't want a day less of cricket and I currently get tests in the day and T20 at night, which is awesome. The proposed format would mean I get less cricket watched.

And if anything the format that is dying is one day cricket. T20 is stealing that audience.

 

[GirtBySea]

ODI cricket is dying or overexposed?

 

[honestbharani]

I feel 5 day tests are fine. Reducing a day is just going to make it worse. And I agree more D/N tests definitely the way forward to boost attendances. Imagine a 5th day chase with 100 odd required and 4 or 5 wickets in hand with the night session to go. With most countries reducing the 5th day ticket prices dramatically anyways, it can be a good way to boost attendances.

 

[Fred Tetanus]

'1 test series every four years'? It is a bilateral thing so only a year lapses between the end of the Australian and the beginning of the English,

2005
2006 - 7
2009
2010 -11

Listen, you requested that I elaborate on my disagreement with four day tests and I have certainly given it. No use getting stroppy now.

It's not every 2yrs (average) when the tests in Australia don't sell out as you claim. If you can point to a 4th day crowd at the MCG with 90,000 people I'll be happy to concede you're right but until that time your choice of using a couple of tests every 4 years as the norm is simply laughable. Reality is the best you will do is a decade ago and that would just be another outlier anyway.

 

[Fred Tetanus]

Interesting inputs from fred and it deserves more thoughtful input than what kennedy and strawman are offering. I'd confidently say test cricket is dead in countries like SL, WI, PAK(also due to other reasons). NZ and SA(it has other issues anyway which puts its long term future in question) get minimal interest in test cricket from majority of sports fans in their countries. India is unpredictable, it doesn't get big crowds for tests but their players like Kohli still have star power which might draw the crowds now and again. Basically test cricket is healthy in only England and Australia. I read that the host boards actually lose money when they host a test series between non big 3 countries, it's actually a sad state of affairs, cricket is actually one of the most expensive games to play and I'm not sure how cricketers from developing countries will be able to compete with developed countries like AUS & ENG in an expensive game like Test cricket as the gap is widening between the cricketers from the rich boards and the poor ones. In 20 years I predict Ashes to be the only form of test cricket to be played.

Thanks for your kind words and thank you for taking the time to use your brain for intelligent thought on the matter. Something that has been sadly lacking from some on this thread.

 

[Fred Tetanus]

I already addressed your second point in an earlier post I made; so:





So not only are you reducing the days from five to four which knocks off a day of ticket sales that you need to make up with higher attendance on other days, you're also introducing cheaper half-day tickets that cannibalise full-day sales and hoping that it still has a positive effect on your bottom line. Even if we're only looking at the immediate financials and ignoring everything else, you'd need some very good data to back up the idea that net sales would increase, to say the least.

There's also nothing stopping introduction of part-day tickets to existing 5-day test matches btw, if they're such a good idea. Presumably a few cricket boards would have looked at this in the past, and yet such part-day tickets are a rarity.

You also still haven't addressed that it's a marathon day for players.

How are you going to introduce half day tickets when there are three sessions in a day? You want to boot them all out in the middle session drinks break? Dear oh dear!

Half day tickets would not be half priced so don't need 2 for every one full day ticket sold. More like 4 sold would generate the revenue of 3 full days. And that's not even considering the fact that 4 people would consume more F&B than 3 people. And do not assume everyone wants to go to the night part. There are plenty of people who would prefer the morning - families, geriatrics etc just to start. Sorry but your thinking is just diabolical here. I get it that you're not a business guy but please try to use more reason.


Actually I have addressed the longer day for players. They are professional athletes and don't need to be mollycoddled. A 4 day test would give an additional day of rest between matches anyway.

 

[S.Kennedy]

It's not every 2yrs (average) when the tests in Australia don't sell out as you claim. If you can point to a 4th day crowd at the MCG with 90,000 people I'll be happy to concede you're right but until that time your choice of using a couple of tests every 4 years as the norm is simply laughable. Reality is the best you will do is a decade ago and that would just be another outlier anyway.

Huh?

There is no doubt that days 4 and 5 sell extremely well, England or Oz. Watch the footage.

 

[Fred Tetanus]

Huh?

There is no doubt that days 4 and 5 sell extremely well, England or Oz. Watch the footage.

You said Day 4 sells out. It doesn't. End of story. Give us some crowd figures for the last few Ashes series in Aus so we can laugh at you some more.

 

[S.Kennedy]

You said Day 4 sells out. It doesn't. End of story. Give us some crowd figures for the last few Ashes series in Aus so we can laugh at you some more.

I cannot give you day-by-day stats because, A/ Wisden does not provide them, B/ fifth days and sometimes fourth days do not always happen, but I can give you the grand figures from 2013/14 Ashes,

Gabba: 122, 910
Adelaide: 153, 530
WACCA: 83, 760
MCG: 271, 865
SCG: 131, 713.

763, 778 saw The Ashes in 2013-4.

How would chopping the fifth day off improve the above figure?

 

[Red]

Thanks for your kind words and thank you for taking the time to use your brain for intelligent thought on the matter. Something that has been sadly lacking from some on this thread.

You could make your points without being a flog about it all. Maybe.

 

[kykweer.proteas]

Removal of a fifth day would have removed some of the greatest moments in test cricket, the end of the (1st) tied test, the 'Miracle of Headingley '81', the final wicket at Edgbaston '05. Some of the most glorious moments of test cricket - basically the reason people live for this wonderful sport - would not have happened.

What about the other 98% of test matches... you want to protect that tiny bit of magic?

 

[kykweer.proteas]

I cannot give you day-by-day stats because, A/ Wisden does not provide them, B/ fifth days and sometimes fourth days do not always happen, but I can give you the grand figures from 2013/14 Ashes,

Gabba: 122, 910
Adelaide: 153, 530
WACCA: 83, 760
MCG: 271, 865
SCG: 131, 713.

763, 778 saw The Ashes in 2013-4.

How would chopping the fifth day off improve the above figure?

Test cricket in Australia, England and India does not need revival. It's the rest of the world that needs it.

 

[fredfertang]

Interesting thread - as a traditionalist at heart my knee jerk reaction is to rail against any shortening of Tests, but there is no doubt that the game has changed a lot over the years I’ve watched it - back when I first took an interest it wasn’t unusual to get five full days play and still end up with a draw - now the expectation is that there will be a result in a Test match and the games are played in a much more positive way than they were in the 60s and 70s and few sides now play for a draw unless they are under the cosh in which case they are unlikely to get it - as a result absent intervention from the weather you almost always get a result these days.

But I am constantly disappointed by the lack of paying customers for many Tests, not least the turnouts in the recent India v England series, and have a real fear that the Boards will give up with them. I don’t know what the answer to that is but I rather doubt the problem is a lack of interest. I get the impression, like with the County Championship here, that despite the sparse attendances on the grounds for the longer formats millions still follow the Tests in India and want Tests to continue.

 

[Red]

You said Day 4 sells out. It doesn't. End of story. Give us some crowd figures for the last few Ashes series in Aus so we can laugh at you some more.

Once again, a bit of decorum would be nice. At the moment I'd say most people are laughing at you, and wondering when you'll be banned.

Ashes crowd figures in Australia have been huge since the 2005 epic Ashes series. Since then the MCG has had 80,000-90,000 on day 1 and 240,000 - 270,000 over the whole 5 days. It's obviously difficult finding day by day figures, but that's an average of 54,000 per day at Ashes tests at the MCG since 2005. I'm sure that was the point S.Kennedy was making. Probably doesn't sell out, but it's still a massive drawcard. Even this year with us playing Pak, there were over 60,000 there on day one.

At the GABBA, we've just drawn a massive crowd for the GABBA test, which CA were very happy with. Obviously D/N tests appeal to the fans. - Record crowd announced for Gabba pink Test - Cricket

In the most recent Adelaide test there were 32,000 there on day one, for the D/N test.

Test cricket in Australia is well attended. Day 1 is always a big day, with a great atmosphere, and you expect crowds to dwindle as the test goes on. But what we are really seeing is how much people enjoy D/N cricket, both at the ground and on TV. Big numbers. I think going forward in Australia, we should maintain the SCG tests and MCG tests as traditional day tests, but allow Adelaide and the GABBA to always go D/N. The WACA's time difference makes it a different story because it already goes prime time into the eastern states.

People might bemoan CA as people do with institutions, but the fact of the matter is, the game is in rude health here in Aus. The Big Bash has been a huge success, CA have got it exactly right, and tests are well attended overall.

In England their small grounds ensure they generally pack out series, and games are well attended there.

The trouble (for tests) comes from India IMO. If India don't value/respect test cricket, then I think tests will struggle. They are significant powerbrokers with a huge population who seem to love the shorter forms more.

I'd be very much in favour of more D/N tests, which are proving popular. I'd be in favour of shorter test series (3) for everyone bar the Ashes. I'd be in favour of four day tests with an extra 10 overs per day, which would work particularly well with D/N tests. As someone said above, you can fit a test series into 3 weeks with four day tests, playing them over Thu-Fri-Sat-Sun. Most of all, I'd be very much in favour of a proper test tournament every four/five years, similar to the WC, which should be the absolute pinnacle of cricket. It should be played at the highest ranking test team's country, and run for 3 months.

 

[Daemon]

I'm not sure why stadium attendance seems to be everything when it comes to discussing Test cricket's popularity.

 

[Red]

I'm not sure why stadium attendance seems to be everything when it comes to discussing Test cricket's popularity.

It isn't but it's a pretty obvious indication.

There's only that and TV ratings.

 

[Dick Rockett]

I'm not sure why stadium attendance seems to be everything when it comes to discussing Test cricket's popularity.

For an ordinary punter like me it is, but the folk that matter are way more interested in TV viewing figures.