Let’s get back to … er … basics

Sometimes I find myself agreeing with the Rust editorial line of seeking to present alternative viewpoints or angles to those provided the mainstream media, simply because (1) well, that’s what we like to do; and (2) why bother to rehash or ‘report’ matters which professional journalists are already covering in spades and depth – and probably just as well or better than we can/could anyway?

As human society evolves – and circumstances unfold – all great globally-popular sports and games face a constant struggle to remain relevant and at the forefront of public interest. Sometimes – I’m being facile here by citing the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics – they remain so dominant in the public’s mind’s eye that nobody would dream of challenging their hegemony … and sometimes they don’t.

When it comes to cricket, on this organ we regularly report and comment upon the doing of Tests, ODIs and the T20 variety. In the past fortnight, there have been discussions in the media on “wither Tests?” – some, like Jonathan Agnew, seem to believe that the five-day game can happily co-exist alongside every other form; others are not so sure.

In the meantime, in the cause of contributing to said debate, here’s a link to an excellent piece by Tim Wigmore as appears today upon the website of – THE INDEPENDENT