Cricketer turned commentator Aakash Chopra wants to see more tri-nation series as it gets more spiced up than bilateral series most of the time.
In recent times, India has become one of the best, if not the best, teams in the world. The Men in Blue are at the top of the ICC ODI and T20I rankings. They are also in the 2nd position in the ICC Test Ranking behind Australia. The Rohit Sharma-led team leads WTC standings and is just 3 wins away to book a seat in the final.
So it gets more difficult to beat India in their own soil for any team in the world. The reigning T20 World Cup champions are also the 2023 ODI World Cup finalists. India had reached the final without tasting a single defeat but got defeated by Australia in the ultimate game.
Currently, India are playing Bangladesh in a 2-Test and 3-T20I series. Not only did India whitewash the visitors in the red-ball series but thrashed them in the initial match of the T20I as well. A point to be noted is that this Bangladesh side recently had a historic Test series win in Pakistan.
Aakash Chopra Wants Tri-Nation Series to Be Back
The dominance of a single team in a bilateral series dims the flair of the matches a little bit. This is what Aaksh Chopra claims as well. Playing a ‘tri-nation or quadrangular series’’ would bring much more excitement and viewership to the game.
“You are not challenged enough in bilaterals at times. Let’s be honest, whichever team comes to India plays ordinary cricket. So can tri-nation or quadrangular series be brought back?” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
Chopra also thinks that the continuation of the same pattern is the byproduct of a lack of existential crisis. As the broadcasters are ready to spend plenty, the cricket heads don’t have to think for a change.
But things might not be the same forever, as per Aakash Chopra. He says that the future of broadcasters complaining about lack of viewership isn’t far.
“There is no existential crisis at the moment because the broadcasters are giving money and you are playing. However, a day will come when the broadcaster will also raise their hands and say they are not getting the returns for their bucks, that they are paying but not gaining that much since the matches are not competitive as your team wins in 10 overs even if your main players don’t play. So what can be changed? I would say the Tri-Nation series is a fantastic thing,” he added.
Aakash Chopra also explains how it could be done seamlessly. According to him, the cricket boards from different countries will have to collaborate and share the revenue for something like a tri-nation or a quadrangular series to take place successfully. He also mentions the change in the trends in cricket where leagues are taking over already.
“How can it be done? Firstly, the boards will have to be slightly liberal in sharing the money. The world economy is changing slightly, and the leagues are dominating. So let’s start making room for each other and go back towards tri-nation,” he said.
As the T20I leagues are skyrocketing in their viewerships already, initiating a tri-nation and quadrangular series would help international cricket stay alive, according to the commentator.
“If you want to save the sanctity of international cricket, the boards will have to come together and play tri-nation and quadrangular series because bilaterals are not that enjoyable as there are so many one-sided games. Then you also forget what happened in the last bilateral,” Chopra observed.
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