'In T20 cricket you should be allowed to bowl two bouncers per over'
'If you prepare a wicket which will also assist the bowlers a little bit, maybe a bit of pace or bounce or spin, then the balance will be addressed'
Former India captain Rahul Dravid has some suggestions to make T20 cricket more exciting. Harish Kotian lists them.
Rahul Dravid called upon cricket administrators to address the balance between bat and ball in Twenty20 to make it more interesting for spectators.
"I believe that you need to address the balance between the bat and ball. I think the exciting games are those in which you get scores of around 160 or 180, but if you have scores of 200 or more in every game then it won’t be so much fun and the balance between bat and ball will cease to exist,” declared Rajasthan Royals’ mentor in Mumbai on Thursday.
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Among his suggestions towards that end is the introduction of two bouncers in an over, like the present ruling in One-Day Internationals.
"If you saw in the World Cup recently, the bowlers used the bouncers quite well; you had two bouncers per over.
"I feel in T20 cricket also you should be allowed to bowl two bouncers per over. That will give the bowler an opportunity to make a comeback, because if you bowl a bouncer off the first ball of the over then the batsmen can easily predict the remaining five deliveries. So you should be allowed to bowl two bouncers."
The former India captain wants the Board of Control for Cricket in India to prepare more balanced tracks so that bowlers can also play a part in the shorter format.
"You need to put some thought on the wickets. If you prepare a wicket which will also assist the bowlers a little bit, maybe a bit of pace or bounce or spin, then the balance will be addressed.
"The boundaries need to be increased, because at some grounds we have seen the boundaries are brought in,” he added.
Dravid, who was rated as one of the best Test batsmen of his era, said he is scared to even dream about shots being played in T20 cricket, like the paddle scoop against fast bowlers or the reverse sweep paddle by batsmen like AB de Villiers or Brendon McCullum.
"Sometimes when I see AB de Villiers playing his shots I say to myself that even in my wildest dreams I never dreamt of playing such shots. So forget playing, I don’t even dare to dream the shots which he plays. I sometimes wonder and say to myself: 'Do these kinds of shots also exist?' when I see someone like AB de Villiers or Brendon McCullum batting."
He hailed de Villiers for his incredible ability to adapt across all formats.
"You have already seen that there are a lot more shots being played in Test cricket and the run rates. If you have been able to see some of the innings that AB de Villiers has been able to play in the last year-and-half in Test cricket, if not like T20 cricket, they have been incredibly attacking and positive innings.
"The guys like AB de Villiers and McCullum have that ability to adapt. De Villiers batted the whole day against Australia to save a Test match, just defending and hardly scoring runs because he needed to save a Test match.
"I think that is what great players are; they have the ability to adapt and adjust and change the game according to what the situation demands. If they come to the IPL, they play differently and they have the skill to play a Test match in England two weeks later and play completely different."
Reacting to Kevin Pietersen not being considered for selection to the England team despite a good showing in county cricket, he said: “Personally, the times I have interacted with Kevin I have really enjoyed my interactions with him. I spent a couple of years with him at Rajasthan Royals and I personally never had any issues with him. It is disappointing and, obviously, it is disappointing from the fans’ perspective, and from the people who follow the game.
" think he is truly an exciting player, a terrific player, and for him not to get an opportunity to play cricket in the years that he has got for England at the highest stage is obviously disappointing for him and people who watched the game."