Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh has highlighted a significant shift in batting styles due to the influence of T20 cricket, suggesting that this has led to a decline in the patience required for marathon innings in Test matches. In a recent podcast interview with PTI, he noted that the current generation of players struggles to replicate the long innings seen in earlier eras.
Harbhajan pointed out that past Test batters successfully balanced aggression with the ability to grind out runs over extended periods, often reaching scores of 250 or 300. He stated, “In this era of T20s, the current generation do not possess the requisite patience like batters of yesteryears. There are very few who can grind it out and score a 250 or 300 in an innings because if you play so many shots, there will always be a chance of getting dismissed. Nowadays, very rarely would you see a batter scoring triple hundred in Tests.” This observation underscores a growing concern about the evolution of batting techniques in the longest format of the game.
Lara scored a 400. “If I look from 2001, Aussies were the only team that would score quickly in Tests, ahead of its times. Others played normal cricket and score 250 runs in a day whereas Australia would look at scoring 350 in a single day every time, they dominated. “So from then (2001) to now, Test cricket has seen a complete transformation as to how teams approach. If you look at how England play the Tests (Bazball), they are trying to score 500 in a day and in that bid you can also get out for 70 or 80. “In earlier times, people slogged for even 10 years to play for India.
Because there was no place in the senior team. The match would go on for five days, and on the fifth day, you won’t know which team would win.
The former off-spinner said bowlers now need to think differently and find ways of forcing attacking batters to abandon their preferred shots. Despite acknowledging the evolution of the format, Harbhajan said he still misses the uncertainty that characterised Test matches in the past. “But now with three formats, you have more opportunity to play for India.”
There was AB de Villiers and Jacques Kallis who hit big double centuries. “As I started playing more and more, every year Test cricket as a format also moved forward and the pace of the game got faster, spinners needed to be more connected (clued in). If you didn’t bring yourself up to speed against attacking games, you were bound to lag behind. “But I believe the charm of Test cricket was what we played back in the day. Harbhajan also feels the rise of the Indian Premier League has altered the incentives for young cricketers, with the lucrative T20 tournament offering players a faster route to recognition and financial rewards. There were a lot of players who scored huge runs like Amol Mujumdar and Amarjeet Kaypee, who couldn’t play for India.
“Earlier there was Brian Lara, then Chris Gayle, Virender Sehwag, Matthew Hayden all of whom scored triple hundreds.
