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New Delhi: One-dayers are fast becoming "boring" and the ICC will have to cut down on Twenty20 games if it wants the 50-over format to survive in the long run, feels former India batsman G R Vishwanath.
"The ICC needs to do something quickly. The important point here is that T20 has gained immense amount of prominence today. It is showing in everything. If you play three ODIs and three T20s, you can see the difference in crowds," Vishwanath said.
"One-day format is becoming a little boring because people have now been exposed to Twenty20. If we continue to play more Twenty20s I am afraid 50-over format will struggle to survive," he said.
Vishwanath feels even Test cricket is feeling the T20 heat and the ICC should come up with a revitalising formula soon.
"A lot of youngsters have started enjoying Twenty20 cricket. Look at the Indian Premier League for example; there were packed crowds for T20 games in South Africa, even though it was an Indian domestic tournament.
"The problem is that maybe in our country the fans want to watch lots of T20 and ODIs and are not able to devote time to Test cricket. However, the ICC is chalking out plans to revitalise Test cricket and we can only hope for the best," he told a website.
However, Vishwanath warned against introducing coloured clothings or coloured balls to bring in the crowds in Test matches.
"I cannot blame the ICC for trying to repackage it since it is fast losing interest, at least in countries besides Australia and England.
"I support the idea of day-night Tests and even four-day Tests to some extent, but I am completely against coloured clothing and coloured balls. It will completely ruin the essence of Test cricket," he explained.
Vishwanath also spoke of the dangers of exposing young cricketers to T20, saying that more money for less cricket may end up being too big a temptation to ignore.
"The biggest problem is the T20 format. There is so much money involved and a youngster can just play a couple of T20 seasons and he is secured. It is not a good sign. We need to give Ranji Trophy and Duleep Trophy more prominence," he said.
"That is the only way to ensure that youngsters will treasure and pride the longer versions of the game and go on to become good Test cricketers. It is all up to the individuals. If a youngster wants to truly play Test cricket and achieve great heights like Tendulkar and Dravid, he will focus on the job," he added.
