'Rule Of Two New Balls And Five Fielders Inside Was Brought To Nullify India's Spin Domination': Ashwin's Bombshell (Source: PTI)
R Ashwin wants the ICC to do away with two new balls and five fielders inside the circle rule to make cricket an even contest between bat and ball in ODIs. The former India cricketer feels the rule was brought in to nullify India's spin advantage in the middle overs. Ashwin also raised concerns about the future of ODI cricket and questioned if there is any place for ODIs in today's game.
“Before this Afghanistan versus England match, I was wondering whether there is any future for ODI cricket,” Ashwin said on his Hindi YouTube channel Ash Ki Baat.
“Let’s be very honest with it. In T20Is, there is so much crowd engagement, and consumption is high because it ends inside four hours. I feel Test cricket will excel more once the first-class structure of teams like Afghanistan improves.
“But in ODIs, there is no contest. Until 2013-14, ODI cricket was played with one ball. Before 2015, the new rule was implemented where five fielders were allowed in the circle, and two balls were introduced. I think in many ways that rule was meant to nullify India’s spin domination. That is just my take.”
“I think that is impacting the game massively because reverse swing is gone from the game now. The role of finger spin has also been reduced.”
Ashwin said that the ICC could be very close to taking a call on the existence of ODI cricket. He said before the Afghanistan vs England match, the ICC Champions Trophy was so monotonous.
“The 50-over World Cup (2027) in South Africa is going to be a real challenge for the ICC. It is on the brink of a decision being made because the game is going so slow. It’s meandering along. I have a question in my mind: is there a place for 50-over cricket in today’s game?
“Until this Afghanistan vs England game, this Champions Trophy was just so monotonous,” he said.
Ashwin also suggested the idea of playing ODI cricket with the red ball. “There used to be a time when one-day cricket was played with the red ball. It is time to seriously give it a thought about this particular format of the game,” he said.
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