Pakistan legend Inzamam-ul-Haq has expressed concerns over the rise of T20 cricket hampering Test cricket, where the true beauty lies.
The legendary batter admitted that T20 cricket is important for the expansion of the game and financial health but the longer format tests the true quality of players.
“The focus, currently, is mainly on T20 cricket. It goes for all the teams and players. Yes, I understand that T20 cricket is entertaining and people enjoy watching the format but the real beauty lies in test matches wherein you find out the quality of a batsman. So, that should be surely be maintained,”
Inzamam-ul-Haq said in a video uploaded in his YouTube channel
The 51-year-old said that if the cricket bodies focus on T20 at the cost of Test, then it would be detrimental for the future of the game.
“Don’t end Test cricket and replace it with T20 cricket. If this happens, it will be unfair to both the sport and the players because if the boards devote more focus to T20 cricket over Tests, then the players will also follow the same path.
Moreover, even the youngsters and the next crop of cricketers will also start focusing more on T20 cricket from the start,”
he added.
With the T20 World Cup lined up later this year, teams play more T20Is to prepare for the ICC event. However, Inzamam-ul-Haq has lashed out at the cricket boards for extending T20Is series from three to five matches while reducing the matches in Test series from three to two. He added that the board shouldn’t send out a message that players should focus on T20 cricket and that T20 is of prime importance.
Inzamam-ul-Haq represented Pakistan from 1992 to 2007 and is known as one of the most elegant batters to have ever graced the game. He played 120 Test matches and scored 8830 runs, the third-highest in the history of Pakistan cricket.
