Where do we see the future of Cricket?

With cricket growing fast as a game it is fascinating to predict what kind of future do we see of cricket in the next 20-30 years down the line. This slideshow takes a sneak-peak into the possible future of cricket.

England recently scored 481 runs in a one day International against Australia. The rate at which scoring rates in one day cricket are increasing, we are not far from seeing the 500 run mark being breached. When T20 cricket started for the first time, many took it as a fun activity with youngsters and elderly people having drinks and enjoying the match. But now we see triangular series being played in the format, the Asia cup has every alternate edition dedicated to it, the World T20 has gained in prominence and leagues around the world are mushrooming like Real Estate in India, minting money and reaching out to a non-traditional audience.

So what does Cricket's future look like in the next 10,20,30 years? Will we see more radical changes to the game or will there be a stability? Frankly, change and innovation is the name of the game. If one remembers well, during Australia's last test tour of India, in 2017, The Australian team were supposed to play a T20I against Sri Lanka in Australia just one day before the first test against India. This indeed was a very unusual scenario to have and Australia had to play a second string side against Sri Lanka, prioritising the test match against India. With such packed schedule that leaves almost no off-season for players, it becomes almost imperative to rotate players. The ICC also needs to do lot of research in terms of what people want to watch, going ahead, and how to keep balance between bat and bowl, which could result in some drastic changes. Here are six changes that, I feel, Cricket will see in the next 10 to 30 years:

1) Test "Friendlies"

While the ICC has unveiled plans for the Test Championship, I do not see Test cricket surviving in it's traditional sense. While the Ashes might still continue to hold fort, other countries might play Test matches like friendlies in football. Once in a while, two teams might agree for a Test match, which could actually keep Test match alive, since it will be played so few and far. Teams might also use these friendlies to prepare for tours consisting of only limited over internationals. In such a case the rules of these friendlies can also be tweaked to be innings of limited overs, and result will be there as the 4th innings batting team will lose if they do not score in the stipulated overs. For example, each team can be given 100 overs to bat in the first Innings. Then in the third and fourth Innings also each team can be given 100 overs to bat. Other rules can remain same for Test cricket, i.e. no free hits, no no-balls and wides (unless it becomes evident wherein the umpire can signal). This could lead to some interesting Tests being played. Some friendlies might even be played at neutral venues.

2) BIGGER T20 WORLD CUP:

With the ICC purportedly using the T20 format for expanding the game globally, we might see football-sized world cups in T20 format in cricket too. As of now there are about 15 countries who can play top-level T20 Cricket and with more exposure and practice, in the next 20 years a 32 team World T20 is not unimaginable. With more countries getting better at T20, the ICC feels that T20 is the format where they can quickly become competitive. Teams can be divided into groups of 4 each and best two from each group proceed to a knock-out stage, similar to the World Cup in Football. This will not only give opportunities to the lesser nations, it will also lead to the game becoming truly popular. While it is true that some matches might be hopelessly one-sided, the fact that they will be of shorter duration will help in not making fans get disinterested. For the game to be truly global, the T20 format has be that vehicle.

3) Same countries playing formats simultaneously:

Way back in 1998, an Indian team without Sachin Tendulkar played the Sahara cup series against Pakistan. The reason? Tendulkar was representing India at the Commonwealth Games in Malaysia. In fact another hero of the preceding series in 1997, Debashish Mohanty, also was part of the Commonwealth Games squad. India went on to lose the series against Pakistan and Tendulkar played only one match, the last of that series. It indeed was an unusual scenario during the time. However, as it was mentioned that Australia played a T20I just a day before a Test match in another country, it would not seem so weird in future. Increasingly boards will look to separate the teams in all three formats and we might see India play an ODI against Australia on the same day that they play a Test match against West Indies. It seems ridiculous but we might be heading towards that fate. This can lead to more specialised players in each format, less injuries and as a result more competitive cricket. In this way cricket can also be marketed much better at non-traditional places. However this could also lead to separate coaches and they all might jostle for a particular played in their team, who might be good at all formats.

4) Ambidextrous bowlers:

If Kevin Petersen or Glenn Maxwell can turn left-handed while batting, why can't Bhuvaneshwar Kumar or Mitchel Starc bowl left handed or right handed respectively? This is one rule i am absolutely waiting for to come in. With bowlers having such thin lines of margin for error, they need to be given a bit of leeway. Dead pitches, 2 new balls in ODIs, small boundaries and field restrictions have made bowlers extremely helpless, and while they do come up with varieties, it still becomes a difficult task. And for those who think that this is cheating I would like to make one point: If a fast bowler running from way behind can bowl a slower ball, why can't he be allowed to change the hand from which he needs to deliver the ball? This will test the batsmen's skills and can only lead to better quality cricket being played.

5) Franchises "owning players":

Cricket is increasingly going the football way. With the T20 leagues around the world gaining more and more prominence, their owners could soon start charging money from ICC for their events, as it happens in Football. This could lead to conflict between boards, franchises, and the ICC, but therein will lie the challenge. The franchises, with the amount of money they have, can always expect to have an upper hand in this, as they do make sure that their players are treated well, for instance when the IPL happens. The ICC might just have to see this as reality and start working over possible ways to increase rewards in their events for the players.

4) China and USA may emerge as ICC strongholds:

Recently ICC acknowledged their dependency on India for revenues. However they are keen to look at alternatives and with some T20Is already being played in USA, in another 20 to 25 years we might see the foundation of the sport being firmly laid in big countries like China and USA. China has started taking baby steps and they took part in Asian Cricket Council Trophy in 2009. It will take them some time to start getting more competitive, but as in other sports, China does make sure that once they start taking a sport seriously, they really become good at it. USA needs to get its governance in place and then it can really start doing well. If that does happen ICC can seriously look at lessening their dependency on India, and the BCCI might begin to lose its edge. This is also a reason BCCI has not been very forthcoming on Cricket's participation in the Olympics.