Couple of surprising rule-changes by Cricket Australia

One must say that one is surprised at the way the Australian cricket board has changed things around in the domestic one-dayers. Having two innings of 20 overs and 25 overs respectively, apart from sea-changes in the other aspects of the limited overs game may end up confusing the average the spectator than arousing his interest.

There are a couple of cricket rule changes that one needs to understand, but at first look seem to be incomprehensible. One is the rule change around the having new balls for both the innings. That may work well for the fast bowlers and the batsmen, who will like the ball coming onto the bat, but one needs to spare a thought for the spinners as well.

The ball usually remains hard for 10-12 overs, and that essentially means that the spinners will be bowling only during the latter half of each innings – that includes the last ten overs of the second innings as well. The question, therefore, is whether the captains will want to play the spinners in a game unless the situation demands it.

The other rule that looks a tad out of the place is the 12-player rule. It is like changing the very ethos on which the game is based – this is a game which has seen the sides play 11-a-side ever since it was first played in 1877. Even in the T20s, where teams bat for only 20 overs, the number of players per team has been restricted to 11, and not pruned down to six or seven. Then, what is the rationale behind allowing 12? Again, under the veil of strategy, the only thing Cricket Australia seem to have done is confuse the average game-watcher.

For the latest cricket news visit CricketFanatic.com

Tags: Australia, Australian Cricket Board, Cricket Australia, cricket rules, rule changes