Restricting ODI's to pay tv only is a horrible idea..
ODIs have been dead in Australia for at least a decade, the beginning of the end started when the tri-series format was scrapped at the end of 2007/08 and before that, Fox Sports had to televise a India vs Sri Lanka match in Canberra just days out after Ch9 refused to do so. This also coincided with the rise of T20 cricket, starting with the introduction of the IPL a few months later.
ODIs only still exist because of the 1) World Cup (which is the ICC's biggest revenue-generating tournament) and 2) the BCCI (where ODIs between subcontinent teams India/Pakistan/Sri Lanka/Bangladesh also generate a lot of money). Long gone are the days when nearly all ODIs involving Australia sold-out and were very difficult to get tickets to, especially in the pre-online Ticketek days.
The AFL reference meter will hit 5 figures by the 2nd morning of the Adelaide Test.
I wasn’t that interested in watching Australia A get hammered this summer. Now I have no interest.
Whilst I'm happy to see Ch9 given the arse, I was hoping Ch10 would get more in the tv rights as their overall production of the BBL (excluding the occasional AFL references) has been fantastic over the past 5 years, and with the commentary team they had in Gilchrist/Ponting/M Waugh et al, they could've taken things to the next level had Ch10 been given an opportunity to broadcast tests/ODIs.
With Ch7 having AFL rights, it's inevitable that there will be some AFL personalities involved with the telecast, and also cross-promotion with the upcoming AFL season during the later stages of the BBL.
If they put Brayshaw on the coverage, I will never watch.
I can see the cricket coverage being fumbleball-reference central now that it has gone to Channel 7.
Just when us cricket fans on this forum thought that we had been spared of Brayshaw after he left Ch9 a couple of years ago, looks like there's a good chance he will be anchoring Ch7's cricket coverage, given he already has experience doing so when Ch7 simulcasted the 2001 Ashes with Sky Sports. Brayshaw was anchor alongside Jeff Thomson IIRC.
Either him, or if Ch7 go for a non-cricketing identity to host, it will be Bruce McAvaney, who the network sees as their version of Ken Sutcliffe: the guy who appears to be the sporting all-rounder and will fly here, there, everywhere whenever they televise a major sports event. Bruce has the runs (aka credentials) on the board when it comes to this regard.
