Will Test cricket be the next dinosaur?

THE EDITOR: Former West Indies Test captain Jason Holder has issued a stern warning about the future of Test cricket, contending that the ICC restructure its calendar to create a window which allowed for the availability of the best players.

Holder was speaking in the wake of his decision to skip the two-Test tour of Australia, where our second-string team is being hammered mercilessly. He wanted to focus on the franchise Twenty20 leagues, a move undertaken by several elite players in recent years. Granted, Mr Holder had made himself available for Test duty, more often than most.

On the recent tour of India to the West Indies my “posse” was present for the first day’s play in the scantily filled Queen’s Park Oval. I made a prediction to my colleagues that this might be the last Test we will be seeing at this venue. Well, we are not that old or suffering from ill health, but the writing is on the wall.

Recently South Africa selected a second-string team to New Zealand (as did WI to Australia) because of the South Africa T20. Australian Test legend Steve Waugh called out West Indies and South Africa on weakened Test squads and also seeks ICC intervention.

“It’s pretty obvious what the problem is, the West Indies aren’t sending their full strength to Australia. They haven’t picked a full-strength team for years now." He continued, “Someone like Nicholas Pooran is really a Test batsman who doesn’t play Test cricket. Jason Holder, probably their best player, is not even playing now. Even Pakistan didn’t send a full side (to Australia)," he argued.

South African cricket administrators said that they needed the money from this series for South Africa cricket to survive.

Cricket West Indies CEO Johnny Grave says that balance and compromise is needed to solve the franchise dilemma. He emphasised that we do pay our players very very well. saying that there is a perception in the world that we pay them a pittance.

He countered, “Most of our international players, when you include and factor in CPL contracts, they’re probably earning half a million US dollars a year, so it’s not like they are playing for us for free.”

However, as Kieron Pollard succinctly put it, “Once the rain is over, an umbrella becomes a burden to everyone. That’s how loyalty ends, when benefits stop.”

Former West Indies captain Brian Lara says the cricket board must try to hold on to the youngsters and teach them the importance of representing their part of the world on the global stage. That’s what Australia has done, he added. Lara also blames franchise cricket for the demise of West Indies cricket.

Faf DuPlessis said, “That’s where the game of cricket is, unfortunately. Since we have seen the rise of the big three (India, Australia and England), there has been more pressure on the rest of the countries. Everything is about money.”

I am a Test purist; I want to see Test cricket still be played in 50 or 100 years' time.

Being a Test “diehard” myself, I was finally brought down to earth and had to face some harsh realities when I read an article by Telford Vice CricBuzz journalist titled T20 tells us that, like Santa Claus, Test cricket’s primacy does not exist. (I finally threw in the Test towel after wiping away some tears.) He said that Santa Claus does not exist and it’s time for everyone to grow up and understand that the international game is not where cricket’s future lies as a going concern. How insensitive.

There are many sports that have gone extinct, such as chariot racing, auto polo, camping, club swinging, fox tossing and pankration to name a few, so who am I to “pine” over Test cricket?

Michael Holding, the West Indian legend, said in an interview that "Test cricket signifies the daily life of a person.” The top “four,” ICC included, need to come up with solutions to keep Tests alive; they cannot abdicate.

Test cricket was/is a game of glorious uncertainties. It’s a reason it’s called a test! The only thing that is certain now is T20 and T10 – enjoy! Hope it can withstand the test.

TERRENCE KALLOO

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