Fans keeping ODI cricket alive, but format will be in trouble in future: Jonty Rhodes

Former South Africa cricketer Jonty Rhodes believes passionate fans are keeping 50-over cricket relevant at the moment. However, the former cricketer warned that the format could face increasing challenges as franchise T20 cricket continues to expand.

Rhodes’ comments come at a time when national associations are playing less and less ODI cricket against each other. There have also been opinions, including from broadcasters at times, that the middle phase of ODI cricket can get boring for viewers who do not have seven hours to sit through a single game.

“For me, it is always understanding that 50-overs cricket might be the one format where, because we bring in such a fresh crowd and a different perspective into the game, possibly 50-overs cricket might be in trouble in the years ahead,” Rhodes told the media during the jersey launch of European T20 Premier League (ETPL) team Rotterdam Dockers in Mumbai on Tuesday.

The 50-over format, however, continues to have one major advantage in Rhodes’ eyes: its supporters.

“From a point of view, we’re really fortunate that what 50-overs cricket has is that you’ve got really passionate fans who will support their team no matter what format or version it is,” he said.

DIFFICULT TO THINK CRICKET WITHOUT ODIS

Rhodes, who co-owns Rotterdam Dockers, said the rise of T20 cricket had not necessarily come at the expense of Test cricket, but felt the future of ODIs could be more uncertain.

“When T20 cricket first started, people were saying it is going to put pressure on Test cricket and amazingly it has not. Some of the Test cricket looks like T20 at times, there is some aggressive batting and bowling,” he said.

The South African added that while the landscape of international cricket could change, the 50-over format remained too deeply embedded in the sport to disappear easily.

“At this stage, I think there will be fewer and fewer bilateral series… but it is very difficult to think of cricket without the 50-over version,” Rhodes said.

Rhodes’ comments come at a time when the international cricket calendar is increasingly competing with a packed franchise schedule, with T20 leagues offering players more opportunities to play shorter-format cricket around the world.

Rotterdam Dockers will feature in the inaugural edition of the European T20 Premier League, which will be held in Voorburg, the Netherlands, and Dublin from August 26 to September 20.

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