Gambhir, Lee against splitting T20s into four innings
Veteran cricketers Gautam Gambhir and Brett Lee have voiced their opinion on splitting T20s into four innings. Speaking on the show Cricket Connected, the duo rejected the idea completely. While Lee believes the T20 format should have its traditional elements, the former Indian opener said Sachin Tendulkar's idea of splitting the ODIs into four innings makes more sense. Here is what they said.
Having four innings is a bit too much: Brett Lee
"I am all for T20s, whether it's IPL or Big Bash to have some flair about it. Some excitement to bring people to the game. But there are some things you want to keep traditional. Having four innings is a bit too much," said Lee.
The idea of splitting ODIs into four innings
Last year, Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar suggested a tweak in the 50-over format. According to him, the format should see two innings of 25 overs each for both the sides. "The format needs a tweak of two innings of 25 overs per side, with a 15-minute break between each innings (a total of four innings between two teams)" Sachin had stated.
Sachin's idea made more sense, feels Gambhir
Gambhir feels Sachin Tendulkar's idea made more sense and could have been implemented in competitive cricket. "I'm not a big believer that we should split T20 cricket into two innings. I think, Sachin Tendulkar somewhere gave a suggestion that we could try doing it with 50 overs which makes a lot of sense because you've got 25 overs (each)," said Gambhir.
The format could take the toss away
According to Gambhir, the four-inning form of ODIs could take away the toss factor. "It also probably takes the toss because in some conditions the toss plays a huge role and I was absolutely favor of that," he said. He added, "But not in T20 cricket, it's too short and there's hardly any time. Splitting that into 10 overs each will be too short."
