Premier Cricket: Melbourne calls for two-day cricket to be added to season fixture

Powerhouse club Melbourne is concerned that too much white-ball cricket is hindering the development of Premier cricketers.

There will be a focus on more red-ball cricket next season.

Victoria Premier Cricket is at risk of producing “flat-track bullies’’ and “dibbly-dobbler’’ bowlers because of a surfeit of white-ball games, according to one of its most powerful clubs.

At a meeting of Premier club presidents last night, Melbourne proposed shaking up the 2021-22 fixture and bringing in two-day games after Christmas.

In a letter dated November 16 – three days after the season was due to begin – Demons Premier Cricket chairman and former champion batsman Andrew Kent said clubs had been wrong to endorse a program of one-day matches.

Last season was also made up of white-ball games because of Covid.

“It significantly delays or fails to properly develop the broader skills and improvement of players, effectively impeding their progression to higher levels,’’ Kent said.

“CV’s approach to high performance, selection processes and higher representative selection has been heavily scrutinised recently. This scrutiny had come from us, the presidents.

“The platform that we now offer the high-performance team to select from is ‘sub par’. A second season of solely one-dayers cannot provide a better preparation for first-class cricket than a mix of one and two-day cricket.’’

Melbourne great Andrew Kent and his club have gone into bat for two-day cricket.

Kent said players needed to be tested against the “unique characteristics of the red ball’’, and cope with “sustained spells, technical and mental examination, spin bowling and balancing the modes of attack and defence’’.

“Batters in one-day cricket have relative freedom once the white ball stops moving while bowlers are forced into containment strategies rather than trying to create wickets.

“We risk producing a group of ‘flat track bullies’ and miserly ‘dibbly-dobblers’. Neither of these groups tend to succeed at higher levels.

“The biggest test for players and teams is two-day finals cricket (three in the First XI grand final). Depth is tested, skill is tested, character is tested. This does not happen to the same extent in the one-day format.

“We risk falling behind. Benchmarked against all other states, ours is the only one going with just one-dayers.’’

Kent said NSW originally had 17 days, which it extended to 19, with 11 one-dayers and four two-dayers.

All finals will be two-day affairs and the grand final will be played over three days).

“Their best two teams will play six two-day and one three-day matches (compared to our nil) and the top four teams will play six two-dayers,’’ Kent said.

In Victoria, Premier Cricket will play up to 37 one-day games, 11 Twenty20 and no two-day games across the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons.

“If we are striving for ‘best practice’ across the formats, how does CV’s fixture stack up?’’ Kent said.

He urged the presidents and Cricket Victoria to “consider the make up of the fixture after Christmas – including finals.’’

Kent said the season was already compromised because of Covid and the push for an “even’’ draw was fruitless.

“Strong leadership is required during challenging times such as these, and greater consideration must be paid to the development of players and the broader ‘good of the game’,’’ he said.

“I strongly urge you to ask CV’s Premier Cricket department and the CV board to reconsider how season 2021-22 is structured.’’

Premier Cricket manager Liam Murphy said the Demons’ proposal generated “robust’’ discussion, but no changes would be made this season because of issues around Covid and the planning required to adjust the fixture.

He said there would be more of a focus on red-ball cricket next season.

Murphy said club coaches and officials were widely consulted before this season’s fixture was released.