The Death of Test Cricket?

South Africa all out for 96. Australia all out for 47. 68 runs fell for 18 wickets. Is test cricket dead? Obviously not.

OK, maybe it isn't right to use the events of one manic afternoon in Cape Town to prove beyond doubt that a format has been saved. But this one weird couple of hours has given us some of the best test cricket that will be seen this year, let alone this decade.

For all of the talk of twenty20 killing test cricket, of players disinterested due to the lack of money, and of crowds staying away, the main threat to test cricket over the past few years has been completely stone dead pitches. We've seen games where 700 has played 600 after the first innings, and the captains could have shaken hands on the draw after the second day. Only a miracle performance with the ball can produce any inch of excitement or sporting competition on these sorts of pitches, leading to dull draws and talk of test cricket's demise.

So isn't it refreshing when a pitch offers a tiny bit to the bowler? While there has been talk about the standard of the pitch not being appropriate to test cricket, there has been a fair battle between bat and ball throughout. The Australian first innings was a case-in-point, a fired up South African bowling attack led by the world's best paceman Dale Steyn chipped away at Australia, but were held back by a world class performance from Michael Clarke. Bat and ball were in fierce competition, and given that these were the world's best in action, the spectacle was fascinating. Clarke eventually perished for 151, dragging his team to 248, and it was as enthralling an innings as I can remember for a long time.

What happened next was absolutely mental, with wickets falling all over the place, and there were plenty of rash shots from batsmen that were far from world class. While there may have been one too many gremlins in the pitch, surely it was more exciting and interesting than seeing bat dominate ball for session after interminable session? And the partnership at the end of Amla and Smith to get South Africa to stumps just one down shows that a lot of the wickets were down to a combination of good bowling, and awful batting.

I don't think any of us really thought test cricket was on it's death bed, and days like this proved just how alive the format is. This test, and the one last week, where the West Indies gave India an almighty shock, certainly show that test cricket isn't really in a terminal decline. Sure, games like this and stories like this don't really help, but ultimately, test cricket is in rude health. And any format that England are best in the world is surely fine in anyone's book...

England's Kit Confusion

As you all know, it's not about the batsmen, the bowlers, the pinch-hitters or the death bowlers. The Cricket World Cup is all about the kits that the teams will be wearing. The fashions of the World Cup are big - with new shirts highly trumpeted and millions sold worldwide. Not too long ago we saw a whole evening devoted to the launch of the Proteas World Cup kit (to mixed reviews), but despite the fact that England are likely to have a nice new shirt, there's been a deathly silence.

There's nothing on the ECB website. There's nothing on the adidas website (who don't have a cricket specific page - or even recognise it under the "Other Sports" section). There's been absolutely nothing said by anyone. We don't even know for 100% definite that there's even going to be a new shirt worn at the World Cup.

While this is a very minor issue in the grand plan of winning the World Cup, it isn't the greatest chapter in the history of the ECB or adidas' public relations. The launch of the kit, as seen when South Africa had a big gala unveiling of theirs, can be a great event to whet the appetite of the cricketing public ahead of the World Cup. And for kids (OK, mostly me), seeing a new kit is really cool and exciting. The ECB and adidas have missed a big trick, as if they had a big launch, it would create a real buzz about the kit, and people would be rushing down the shops to get their nice new World Cup shirt with "Wright 6" or "Tredwell 53" on the back. As it is, there's nothing. Just me, constantly searching the internet for anything about the kit.

Here's how adidas had a go in the past - the launch of test, ODI and T20 shirts in 2008. Bit better than the silence of 2011. And it's got Tim Ambrose, which is always a plus.




Given that adidas have just launched a new shirt for South Africa, I'm going to assume that England are using the same template, with the green and yellow subsituted for red and blue. After much sweeping of the internet, I've found a potential artist's impression. No idea if this is going to be the real deal, but it's the best we've got.

Graeme Smith in the Proteas adidas World Cup kit

Is this the kit? Who knows...

This England shirt (if there even is a new shirt and they aren't just keeping the current navy-with-green-armpit one) won't be getting a big launch with fanfares, cheerleaders or fireworks. It will more likely than not be first seen on whoever walks onto the pitch first in the warm up against Canada on Wednesday. Hardly the big launch that it deserves. Mainly because I love a good kit launch.