IPL 2018: Gary Kirsten in Favour of Longer Boundary Ropes, Reduction of Bat Sizes

Cricket has always been known as the batsman’s game. The bowlers have often been at the receiving end and therefore former Proteas cricketer, Gary Kirsten has called for certain changes.

In a bid to make the game more exciting along with fair contests between the bat and ball, specific laws should get enforced, says the World Cup Winning Coach.

“Pitches that help bowlers take care of this element in Test cricket. But in shorter formats, the boundaries need to be longer, and bats should be downsized.” Kristen told Times of India.

On IPL, Gary Kirsten said the biggest USP of the Indian league is its relevance.

The relevance of IPL

The Indian T20 league is in its 11th edition, and the following hasn’t gone down. The stadiums have been jampacked, and viewership has touched new digits.

“(IPL caters to) Relevance,” said the former explosive opener, who is currently working as the batting coach of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).

“The franchise cricket is attracting more attention than traditional forms from all the stakeholders of the game. The challenge is to embrace new values without losing out on traditional wisdom. The IPL is successful because it caters to the market of instant gratification. It’s fast, rewarding, exciting and entertaining.” he said.

Bhogle echoes Gary’s thoughts

With the edges carrying to the stands, the sixes count has gone up, but the bowlers have been on the receiving end on most occasions.

Renowned cricket commentator, Harsha Bhogle recently came up with a solution to counter the massive advantage on the batsmen part. He took to Twitter to suggest a change that will help bowlers very much in the game.

“How about we make cricket balls that swing for 20 overs to counter bats that are one large sweet spot, that no longer have edges or bottoms!” the tweet read.