Former Australian cricket captain, Mark Taylor, has come up with a radical solution to save Test cricket, which has been suffering from declining viewership in recent years. Taylor suggests that teams should play four-day Tests instead of the traditional five-day format, as it allows captains to be “more adventurous” in their approach.
The suggestion comes in the wake of the ongoing India-Australia Test series, which saw all three matches finishing in just over two days. Taylor believes that the new format would work better, with players having three days off between games.
In an interview with Wide World of Sports, Taylor emphasized that cricket needs to move with the times and adapt to the changing needs of players and audiences. He believes that the four-day format would put the onus on skippers to be more creative, while also providing more time for rest and recovery between matches. He also acknowledged that high-scoring Tests can often be tedious, and suggested that flat pitches should be countered by early declarations, rather than waiting for a draw.
Taylor’s proposal comes at a time when cricket is grappling with a number of challenges, including declining Test viewership and the dominance of limited-overs formats like T20. The four-day Test format has been tried before, but has faced resistance from purists who argue that it undermines the integrity of the game. However, Taylor believes that the new format could provide a much-needed boost to Test cricket, by making it more engaging and exciting for players and fans alike.
