Tests in Pakistan boost long-format’s revival

Crowd on the weekend showed the potential Pakistan has in terms for pulling in spectators

Every now and then the cricketing world talks about how innovation can help save Test cricket. Day-night Tests came as a result of the conversation on how the five-day cricket can be made entertaining, if not more than T20Is and ODIs, then at the least equally enjoyable.

The return of cricket and now Test cricket in Pakistan has helped the process of pulling crowds to the stadium. The Rawalpindi Test may have attracted masses but rain ruined the show, however, in Karachi, the crowd on the weekend showed the potential that Pakistan has in terms for pulling in spectators for Tests.

The reason may be that the cricket lovers in the country have been waiting for sports-tainment for a long time now. And Pakistan and the ICC can cash on that hunger by bringing in more Tests to the country.

T20Is are short and entertaining, there is no doubt in that. ODIs are surviving too as people see them as an extension of the 20-over format. However, with people demanding more in less time, Test cricket’s future is in doubt.

The format is here to stay to say the least, but it is already being seen that they are not great crowd-pullers when it comes to the people coming to the ground to see the matches.

One more factor that contributes to the decreasing footfall in stadiums for Test is that there is no certainty of a result in contrast to T20Is and ODIs, where there are provision to pull a result out of the match even after an initial stalemate.

This and many more factors contribute to why Tests are losing the eyes of the spectators.

Purists still believe that Test cricket is the ‘real’ form of the sport, but the dwindling numbers of the longest format and the ever-increasing market for T20Is is something to consider. Moreover, T10 leagues and the new 100-ball format may further dent Test cricket’s chances of becoming fan favourite once again.

All in all, Pakistan is the perfect spot right now for the ICC to invest time and effort so as to fill stadiums with crowd for Test matches. Impending tours of top cricket playing nations will prove that too, as has the ongoing Sri Lanka series. But the most important thing will not be to bring in the crowd for one or more series, it will be to sustain them over a longer period.