NEIL MANTHORP: Mickey Mouse ruling a kick in the teeth for smaller nations
SA desperately needs the Test championship to flourish, but ICC’s penalties make that more difficult
England and Australia lived up to the elongated hype and delivered an Ashes series which captivated cricket lovers around the world and proved, again, that there is plenty of mileage left in the format. But there was a kick in the teeth from the game’s global administrators the day after the 2-2 draw was completed, a blow that may be felt most painfully by the world’s smaller Test-playing nations.
England captain Ben Stokes spoke about providing a “boost” for Test cricket, with the Ashes series giving the format a much-needed shot in the arm. It was subsequently noted, wryly, that capacity crowds on almost every day at five venues in England did not reflect Test cricket in crisis. And that other countries Are facing significantly greater problems than England or Australia...
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