What to do about tour matches

[TheJediBrah]

Pakistan just picked their 'A' Team for Australia's only match in UAE, and it does not include a single specialist spin bowler. A blatant tactic to rob the touring side of practice ahead of the Test series where they are expected to be facing a spin-heavy attack. Basically the same thing happened on Australia's last tour to Sri Lanka where the tour match was on a greentop against a team of seamers, leading into the Tests on dustbowls against nothing but spinners.

Personally I think such "tactics" are a disgrace but overall feeds into what has been an issue for some time, which is what to do about tour matches? With international schedules packed, time not being available, understrength sides being named and blatant cheating (IMO) by the likes of Sri Lanka and Pakistan, tour matches are almost becoming a waste of time.

Would touring sides be better off just organising their own intra-squad practices instead? Should host boards be forced to display common human decency and common sense? Discuss.

 

[Athlai]

Don't worry we've been working on making sure tour matches are a thing of the past

 

[jimmy101]

Indeed this is a massive problem right now. I think the ICC needs to step in and formulate a doctrine that ensures all tour matches are against First Class opposition, and team's such as Board President's XI, PM's XI or national 'A' teams need to be done away with as they're currently being exploited for negative purposes. Additionally a "capped points system" could be introduced (similar to what is currently in place a club cricket level) wherein there is a fixed points limit for each team, and players which have been long established at a club are worth less points, whereas new players are worth more points. If a law was put in place that ensured all tour matches were to be scheduled against FC opposition (ie Shield/County teams) and the points cap was also implemented, this might stop boards from packing their 'A' sides with nobody but youngsters, as inexperienced players would cost too many "points".

Also, some kind of deal that makes sure tour matches are played on suitable/fair pitches wouldn't hurt.

 

[TheJediBrah]

Don't worry we've been working on making sure tour matches are a thing of the past

If you're referring to NZ then that's fair. No need for tour matches when you don't even play Tests.

Seriously though I don't think Aus have had a tour match at all on their last tours to NZ, but that's not really a big deal compared to a tour of Asia/UAE, from Australia's perspective. We usually go to NZ at the end of our season anyway so don't really need much practice.

 

[SteveNZ]

As the schedules become more and more jam-packed with T20 comps and national administrators trying to jam in as many cash-spinning T20 internationals, extra ODIs etc as they can, undoubtedly the tour matches will become more scarce.

And yeah, when you do get them, the local sides have the ability to make those rare warm-ups completely irrelevant.

Better off producing your own to-suit wickets at home or in a neutral venue - ie Dubai apparently is coming up with some crazy facility with pitches that match everywhere the world over - and then calling in bowlers etc as you require.

 

[TheJediBrah]

I can forgive fielding an understrength side because you don't have players available, sometimes you can't avoid that, but deliberately providing bad practice by providing conditions and opposition vastly different to what the Test matches will display needs to be seriously punished.

 

[GotSpin]

I can forgive fielding an understrength side because you don't have players available, sometimes you can't avoid that, but deliberately providing bad practice by providing conditions and opposition vastly different to what the Test matches will display needs to be seriously punished.

If true regarding Dubai, we might as well start taking two squads over and playing FC matches against each other in preparation for tours. We certainly have enough bowlers to field two very competitive attacks

 

[TheJediBrah]

If true regarding Dubai, we might as well start taking two squads over and playing FC matches against each other in preparation for tours. We certainly have enough bowlers to field two very competitive attacks

From a purely Australian perspective I agree with this, but it's not really that much different to playing intra-squad practice matches/centre-wickets. I think camps like the one we did prior to India 2017 is the way to go, to best control your own preparation.

 

[GotSpin]

From a purely Australian perspective I agree with this, but it's not really that much different to playing intra-squad practice matches/centre-wickets. I think camps like the one we did prior to India 2017 is the way to go, to best control your own preparation.

Well we could turn them into proper FC matches to make them more competitive.

The camps like we ran before India clearly work though. Why the hell would we want to go to Sri Lanka and play on green tops or something

 

[cnerd123]

Yea I think the way moving forward is to find/prepare training facilities that match the conditions you expect to play in + bring in players to help with the preparation. I don't think it will be long till sides start hiring domestic cricketers from other nations to come over and work with them in the leadup to a tour. You also already have them hiring former players with expertise in those conditions as consultants on tour-by-tour basis, and even sending players to take part in domestic competitions in those countries when they're able to.

Tour games have just become a way for the host nation to get some young/raw talent a bit of valuable game time, and for visiting nations to test match fitness of players and experiment with different ideas.

What I hope comes out of this is sides now playing Tests against 'lesser' nations on the way to the marquee series as their real warmup - play BD and Afghanistan on the way to a Subcontinental tour, play Ireland on the way to an England tour, and play NZ (if they can afford it) on the way to an Aus tour. Works out pretty perfectly that way. If ZCB gets their **** together, they become a good warmup for a SA tour.

 

[Burgey]

Ok

 

[stephen]

I thoroughly agree with *****, which is a perfectly depressing thought.

Why play Sussex when you can play Ireland? Why play Tasmania when you can play New Zealand?

 

[Starfighter]

You can't play NZ though. They don't want you.

I must say out of all of *****'s country combinations NZ/Aus is probably by far the worst for a touring team from a conditions perspective.

 

[Gnske]

Would playing tests in NZ in October be even any good?

Not that I'm objected to giving them more.

 

[cnerd123]

You can't play NZ though. They don't want you.

I must say out of all of *****'s country combinations NZ/Aus is probably by far the worst for a touring team from a conditions perspective.

Yea NZ is nothing like Australia - tiny grounds with seaming/sweaming pitches to hard tracks and large boundaries.

Given NZ's financial struggles, maybe CA should just absorb them into the Sheffield Shield? Have them play in Australia. I'm sure they'll be somewhat competitive, and this way Kane Williamson will actually get to play some cricket.

 

[stephen]

We could do with Williamson at 4 and Wagner as a backup bowler.

 

[Gnske]

We don't need more foreigners taking jobs.

 

[stephen]

So long as they play sports we've never had an issue with adopting them.

 

[cnerd123]

We could do with Williamson at 4 and Wagner as a backup bowler.

Nah they still get to play for New Zealand. It would be like how Ireland/Scotland/Netherlands player still play in England but turn out of their own nations.

 

[TheJediBrah]

Yea NZ is nothing like Australia - tiny grounds with seaming/sweaming pitches to hard tracks and large boundaries.

Given NZ's financial struggles, maybe CA should just absorb them into the Sheffield Shield? Have them play in Australia. I'm sure they'll be somewhat competitive, and this way Kane Williamson will actually get to play some cricket.

Probably should tbh. NZ need some relevance as a team, nay, as a country.

We could do with Williamson at 4 and Wagner as a backup bowler.

I'd have Williamson at 3 and Smith at 4, Khawaja to open. Even someone like Boult could be useful as a change bowler when Starc, Hazlewood, Cummins, Pattinson, Coulter-Nile, Behrendorff, Tremain and Worrall are all injured.