One Day Cricket

One day cricket brought a new dimension to the sport, at a time when it needed revitalizing.

Similar competitions developed rapidly in other cricketing nations, and the first one day international (ODI) was played in Melbourne, Australia in 1971.

This was a 40 over per side game between England and Australia, and was only played to occupy the 5th day of a rain affected test match. However, the format was so successful, that it soon led to what was to become the premier international cricket competition, the Cricket World Cup, which has been played every 4 years since 1975.

For many years, one day cricket was frowned on by the cricket purists, and many still regard the 5 day test match as the classic form of the game. But, the one day game brought concentrated entertainment into the sport that test matches couldn’t match, and most ODIs are now sold out well before the day of the match.

A major influence on raising the profile of the ODI was World Series Cricket, which was introduced in 1977 by the Australian media tycoon, Kerry Packer. The WSC format was a series of ODIs between teams of leading internationals. These players joined the Packer revolution in preference to playing for their national sides, mainly because of the superior wages paid for by the television rights that were secured by Packer’s Channel Nine.

This led to a series of ugly confrontations between Packer and the global cricket authorities. But, although WSC only lasted for two years, it led to major long term benefits for cricket worldwide; it elevated one day internationals into serious rivals to test cricket, and changed the sport forever.

These changes included improved player fitness, to keep pace with the punishing WSC fixture list; floodlit day/night matches have become common in most cricketing countries, attracting huge crowds. Players have become full time professionals, and the revenue from television rights has become a highly prized commodity. And not least, coloured cricket clothing is now a standard uniform for ODIs, driving a thriving replica shirt market.

One day cricket must sometimes compete with the weather to complete a match within a day. But, choosing the winner of a rained-off match was a problem. Comparing the run rates of both teams in terms of overs or time used by the chasing team was never satisfactory. Then, in 1997, Frank Duckworth and Tony Lewis devised the Duckworth-Lewis (D/L) method and this was adopted by the ICC for One Day Internationals in 2001.

The D/L method has its critics, but is still the fairest way of deciding who would have won a rain curtailed match. It uses the balance of the two resources available to the team involved in a run chase, overs remaining and wickets in hand, to give a varying run target at all stages of the run chase.

This is complicated, but successful, and actually calibrates well against historical run chases. It only comes into force after 20 overs have been bowled in the second innings of a 50 over match, or 5 overs of a Twenty20 game.

The Powerplay brought new excitement to 50 over ODI cricket in 2005. Before this, only two fielders were allowed outside a circle 30 yards from the striker’s wicket. The idea was to encourage attacking batting at the start of the innings, and this was moderately successful. The Powerplay takes the idea further, so that the first 10 overs are Powerplay 1, when there must be at least 2 close catchers and no more 2 fielders outside the circle. Powerplay 2 and Powerplay 3 are subsequent 5 over spells, but the only restriction is to two fielders outside the circle.

The fielding captain decides when the last two Powerplays will be taken, and this will generally be when the run rate is reduced. And, the batsmen will try and take advantage when these fielding restrictions are in force, without losing wickets in the process. This has given the captains another tactical challenge, and given paying spectators more excitement. It has also introduced one of the more exciting umpiring signals at the start of each Powerplay, this being a “windmill” action with the arm.

Day-night one day cricket is also played with a white ball, to improve its visibility under floodlights. However, the white leather soon becomes tarnished and difficult to see, because the leather is painted white rather than stained red. So, it is changed after 35 overs for another, less tarnished “35 over” ball. The jury is still out on this option, as a clearly visible ball is essential for players and spectators, but the white ball only achieves this when it’s new.

One day cricket has been a huge success for global audiences. It demands a different set of cricketing skills to test cricket, and has itself been challenged by the relatively new Twenty20 format. The enormously successful Twenty20 World Cup of 2007 set the standards that others must follow, and was another winner for the paying spectator. So, whatever the purists might say, one day cricket has made the sport even more enjoyable for all of us.

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