Shamik Chakrabarty in Kolkata
On the face of it, an unbalanced white-ball series a month before the Champions Trophy serves little purpose. An eight-match limited-over series between India and England is commencing in Kolkata on Wednesday. Five T20Is and three ODIs make things lopsided. The Champions Trophy is an elite eight-team ODI event. So, an overload of T20Is defies logic.
Then again, it’s down to commerce. T20 cricket is like Bollywood masala movies that hardly make any lasting impression. But the three-hour evening show woos the fans and broadcasters, and fills the coffers of the cricket boards. Cricketers know that, but they don’t decide things. The powers-that-be call the shots, and the BCCI and the ECB in tandem have decided that the two powerhouses of world cricket would be better off with a roster that is heavily leaning towards the shortest format.
Jos Buttler, England’s white-ball skipper, was a good sport when asked about this. “Not too worried about the schedule,” he said. “The T20 series would be exciting.”
He spoke about the team composition as well, that Phil Salt will keep wicket and Jamie Smith will miss out in the first game.
In isolation, the T20I series promises to offer plenty of excitement. Both sides have batting line-ups that revel in a devil-may-care approach. England were the early birds in setting the template in this format – that there’s no specific Powerplay and the approach remains unchanged for all 20 overs.
Belatedly, it dawned on India that their slow-burn style had become passe. As Gautam Gambhir became the new head coach and Suryakumar Yadav assumed the role of T20I captaincy, India decided to hit fifth gear. The Indian team in this format doesn’t carry ensconced deadwood. A young group of cricketers, by-products of the IPL, have made the side unfettered.
Since the T20 World Cup last year, India have gone past 200 seven times. A couple of times they flirted with 300 even, posting 297 and 283.
England’s heavy artillery comprises Buttler, Salt, Harry Brook, Ben Duckett, Liam Livingstone and the wonderful young talent Jacob Bethell. Their combined IPL value is Rs 44.85 crore. The series will also mark the beginning of Brendon McCullum’s tenure as England’s white-ball coach. The man who gave Bazball to Test cricket might have something new up his sleeve in the shortest format also.
“I’m desperate for us to play a really watchable brand of cricket,” McCullum told reporters yesterday. “We have got a batting line-up which is as powerful as any batting line-up in the world.”
Buttler stressed upon building a coach-captain rapport in this format. “We have to build the coach-captain alliance,” said the 34-year-old, who wowed the Eden crowd with a superlative century for Rajasthan Royals against Kolkata Knight Riders in last year’s IPL. “Of course, he (McCullum) is not new and has been around in the red-ball set-up. But good to have him in the white-ball ball set-up (as well).”
Going by Eden Gardens’ curator Sujan Mukherjee, a high-scoring pitch has been laid out, although McCullum thinks it could be a bit on the slower side. Even if that is the case, batsmen from both sides are strong-armed enough to negate the pitch factor. Also, this is peak winter in Kolkata and dew is going to make its presence felt.
‘Having families on tour doesn’t affect cricket’
The BCCI’s 10-point diktat for players limits families’ stay on tour. As per the new rule, wives and girlfriends (WAGs) can be with the players for no more than 14 days on tours of 45 days or more. On shorter tours, the duration that families can accompany players is up to a week.
Buttler, though, spoke about the importance of having families on tour. “Very important to have families on tour,” he said. “It always helps. In modern times, a lot of cricket is being played. And it helps when you have your close ones with you. It doesn’t affect cricket. Post-Covid, such things have been highlighted a lot more and personally, it helps.”
Also Read: Shami skips bowling, Axar calls his return ‘big positive’
The post Buttler plays down lopsided schedule, backs families’ presence on tour appeared first on Sports News Portal | Latest Sports Articles | Revsports.
