New Delhi:
The skipper of Indian cricket team Virat Kohli said that Test cricket said he does not see the longest format of the game getting shredded to four days and added it should not be “tinkered” with as the International Cricket Council (ICC) is considering different ways to modernise the traditional format of cricket. “It’s the most beautiful format of the game. I don’t think it’s going to go anywhere. I don’t even see it getting compressed to four days. It’s literally living life over five days. There are so many ups and downs and even when you’ve done well you’ve got to keep coming back and doing it all over again, Kohli said.
The 29-year-old swashbuckling batter, who has been one of the top run scorers in recent times, said that the satisfaction level is unexplainable when a player does well in Test cricket.
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“I cannot explain to you the job satisfaction that you get when you do well in Test cricket, because you know how demanding it is,” Kohli told ‘Wisden’.
When asked about if the proposed four-day Test matches are a backward step, he said, “definitely. It should not be tinkered with.”
The growing number of T20 leagues across the world has put the longest format of the game in danger.
“In a few countries, yes. It all depends on the awareness of people who watch the game. If you take a country like South Africa or Australia or England, they have big crowds for Test matches because people understand the sport.
“I think that if you really understand the sport, if you really love the sport, you understand Test cricket and you understand how exciting it is.
The ICC is set to introduce a nine-team two-year Test World Championship in 2019 and the Indian skipper is in favour of it.
“I think that is going to give a huge push to Test cricket. It makes every series more competitive, and there’s going to be ups and downs throughout the Championship, which I really look forward to. The teams that love playing Test cricket are always going to be passionate about it.
Virat Kohli has scored 593 runs at an average of 59.30 in the recently concluded five-match Test series against England.
