Legendary Pakistani pacer Waqar Younis has thrown a compelling proposal into the cricketing arena, urging the International Cricket Council (ICC) to reconsider the two-new balls rule in One Day Internationals (ODIs). Waqar advocates for the removal of one ball after 30 overs, allowing the final 20 overs to be bowled with the old ball, fostering conditions conducive to reverse swing.
Expressing his concerns, Waqar tweeted, “ODI cricket is too friendly for batters Suggestion @ICC 2 new balls to start, take away 1 ball after 30 overs, continue with the other. At the end, that ball will only be 3.5 overs old. We’ll see some reverse at the end. Save the art of #ReverseSwing.” His proposal aims to level the playing field and reintroduce the challenging aspect of reverse swing in the latter part of the innings.
Mitchell Starc Echoes the Call: Bowling Needs a Boost
Joining Waqar’s chorus for change, Australian speedster Mitchell Starc voiced his agreement, emphasizing the current imbalance between bat and ball in white-ball cricket. Starc argues that reverting to a single-ball setup would make it harder for batsmen, especially in the later stages of an innings, contributing to a more engaging contest between bat and ball.
Starc highlights the impact of using two new balls, stating, “The ball stays harder for longer. If anything in world cricket wickets have gotten flatter, and I think if you look at some of that old footage when they bowled with one ball, reverse swing comes into it a lot more. That actually brings the bowlers back into the game.” Starc emphasizes the importance of reversing the ball, a skill that has diminished with the prevalence of two new balls.
Sachin Tendulkar’s Historical Perspective: A Perfect Recipe for Disaster
Adding weight to the argument, Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar, back in 2018, had labelled the two-new balls rule as “a perfect recipe for disaster.” Tendulkar highlighted the detrimental impact on reverse swing, a critical component in the death overs, and expressed concerns over its gradual disappearance from the game.
As the cricketing world contemplates these proposed changes, Waqar Younis’s call for modifying the two-new-balls rule might reshape the dynamics of ODI cricket. The quest to strike a balance between bat and ball intensifies, and cricket enthusiasts await potential amendments that could rejuvenate the essence of reverse swing in the limited-overs format.
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