It's called Test cricket for a reason, change it to 'easy cricket' if they make it four days: Ben Stokes
Many giants of the game, Sachin Tendulkar, Ravi Shastri, Ian Botham, Virat Kohli already opposed the idea of four-day Tests.
England leveled the Test series 1-1 with two more games to go against South Africa. The first Test was won by Proteas quite convincingly. However, Brits made a fighting comeback to register a 189-run win the second Test. Dom Sibley, Ben Stokes were the heroes for their side in the game.
Ben Stokes scored a few valuable runs and picked crucial wickets in Newlands Test and was rightfully adjudged the player of the match. But, Stokes, in a heartwarming gesture, gave the award to Dominic Sibley, who scored a gutsy hundred to give England the winning chance in the 2nd innings.
Test cricket should be a five-day affair: Ben Stokes
After the much-needed win, Ben Stokes was asked about a much-debated topic, i.e. ‘Four-day Tests’. ICC is all set to discuss the idea of making Tests a four-day affair to reduce the players’ workload and already heavily filled international schedule. Stokes said that Test cricket should always stay as a five-day affair. He also added that Test cricket should be termed as ‘easy cricket’ if it is changed to a four-day affair.
“We will all remember this for a long time and I’m sure South Africa will remember it for a long time. It will go down as one of the greats. It was an amazing game to be a part of. The fact it went all the way to the wire proves why Test cricket should be five days and should always stay five days,” he said as quoted by The Guardian.
“It must be amazing as a spectator to be living through these emotions but being a player on the field, going through the highs and lows of what test cricket can do to you on a day-to-day basis is just awesome. Test cricket is not made for four days, it’s made for five. It’s called Test cricket for a reason. They should change it to ‘easy cricket’ if they make it four days.”
Many giants of the game, Sachin Tendulkar, Ravi Shastri, Ian Botham, Virat Kohli already opposed the idea of four-day Tests. England will play their next Test in Port Elizabeth, with the final Test of the series, scheduled in Johannesburg.
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