ODI cricket “in serious strife” after Test opener’s grim warning

One-day cricket is in “serious strife” due to the riches of the T20 format, according to News Corp cricket writer Robert Craddock.

It comes after Australian Test opener Usman Khawaja recently said the ODI game is “dying a slow death” in a grim warning for the format’s future.

In a blow to one-day cricket, England all-rounder Ben Stokes called time on his 50-over career due to the “unsustainable” international cricketing schedule.

“You’ve got Test cricket, which is the pinnacle, you’ve got T20 cricket which obviously has leagues around the world, great entertainment, everyone loves it, and then there’s one-day cricket, and I feel like that’s probably the third ranked out of all of them,” Khawaja said.

“I think personally one-day cricket is dying a slow death, but at the end of the day, there’s still one-day cricket to be had. There’s still the World Cup, which I think is really fun and enjoyable to watch.

“Other than that, I’m probably not into one-day cricket much either.”

In a sign of the times, South Africa withdrew from a 50-over series against Australia that was earmarked for mid-January. The decision could impact the Proteas’ hopes of direct qualification for next year’s World Cup.

The three-match series was due to clash with South Africa’s new franchise T20 league. It also means Australia’s Test players can be available for the BBL after the Sydney Test.

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“I don’t think that it’s going anywhere soon while there’s World Cups, such as the one next year,” Craddock told SEN’s Whateley.

“However, it is in serious strife.

“You’ve got to be candid about it, it’s just not as a financial – the T20s are dripping with riches and the poor old 50-over competitions, it’s almost as if they’re dressed in a tracksuit and doing it’s best so to speak.

“One of the tipping points for me was next January, Australia and South Africa cancelled a 50-over series in Australia because neither country wanted to play it. South Africa wanted to get their T20 competition up even if it costs them a berth in the 50-over World Cup.

“When you hear statements like that that’s when you think, ‘Yes, you can say this format is officially in trouble’.

“And it’s not just T20 – there’s T10s out there now, there’s the 100-ball competition in England, so the poor old 50-over competition is limping along.

“It absolutely is under siege. Is it in a death spiral? It might be, but I do think the World Cup will sustain it on an occasional basis.”

Khawaja hasn’t represented Australia in ODIs since the 2019 World Cup.

The 2023 ODI World Cup is scheduled to be hosted in India during October and November next year.