5 Changes that can help reinvigorate ODI cricket

3. Leniency on wides:

The wide rule in ODI cricket – particularly the leg-side one – is stunningly harsh towards the bowlers. They just have to bowl an inch, even marginally so, outside the batsmen’s legs and out go the umpire’s hands. For very obvious reasons, this rule needs to be revised. Bowlers, in any case, have it extremely rough in the shorter format these days. The leg-side wide rule further adds to their woes. Extending the ‘mark’ of the wides by a few inches would help bowlers in outfoxing the batsmen when they are being pummeled for runs on flat decks. It would also mean that the batsman, in case he is being bogged down by the bowler on the leg-side courtesy this rule, will be forced to come out with varied shots to counter it. This could, hence, alter the balance of ODI cricket in a defining way.