The Indian cricket team clinched the T20 World Cup title in 2024 but overall, the year was quite disappointing for Rohit Sharma and Co. While the team did dominate the shortest format of the sport, their performances in the Test and ODI formats left the fans and experts quite concerned. India suffered a massive 3-0 Test series loss against New Zealand at home and in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy, they trail 1-2 against Australia with their World Test Championship (WTC) Final dreams hanging by a thread. However, it is the ODI format where India hit a low after 45 years as they ended the year without a single victory as they tied one game and lost two against Sri Lanka.
ODI cricket was almost absent from India’s cricket calendar in 2024 as they played just three matches in the 50-over format. The only ODI series that India played in 2024 was against Sri Lanka away from home. While India showed some promise, it was the hosts who emerged victorious 2-0.
With no other matches in 2024, India finished the year without a single ODI win. The last time this happened was back in 1979 – a campaign that saw the team losing all the matches in the World Cup.
Overall, this was the fourth time since 1974 that India finished a year without any ODI victory.
Meanwhile, former India coach Ravi Shastri has called for the implementation of a two-tier system in Test cricket, saying the structure will allow for the survival of the longer format.
Shastri’s comments come after the Boxing Day Test between India and Australia drew 373,691 spectators across all five days, to become the most-attended Test match in Australia. It beat the previous record of 350,534 at the same venue during the 1936/37 Ashes series against England.
“To break crowd records that have stood for nearly a century… is testimony to the fact that when the best teams play, the toughest and best format of the game is still alive and thriving.
“It was also a sound reminder to the ICC (International Cricket Council) that the best should play the best for Test cricket to survive. I will say that there’s too much of a clutter otherwise.
“This match further emphasises why we need a two-tier system with the top 6-8 teams and then include promotion and demotion. You will not get these kinds of crowds if you don’t have two proper teams playing,” wrote Shastri in his column for The Australian.
(With IANS inputs)
