Still pretty empty that we lost that, but Aust were just a bit better again…. But f**k me, how good is test cricket, 4 days of enthralling competition
This.
When I first started following cricket in the mid '90s, I used to have a much stronger interest in ODIs than tests. It was during the Steve Waugh captaincy era (1999-2004) that my interest in test cricket dramatically increased.
As I've got older, I have a greater appreciation for test cricket and thoroughly believe it deserves it's status as the highest form of the game. I had minimal interest in the Australia vs West Indies ODI and T20 series after the Gabba test match. Most fans would've preferred to see those useless series ditched in favour of a 3rd and deciding test match.
On an unrelated note, good to see the pitches over the Australian summer that's just past were juiced up, giving the bowlers something to work with. It's been a very long time since that's occurred, especially at the venues that use drop-in pitches (Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne). 1st innings in Perth was the only time during the test summer that a team scored more than 400.
Whilst rule changes in white-ball formats over the years have been made to see more 4s and 6s and batsmen dominate the game, I've always been of the belief that test pitches need to be slightly in favour of the bowlers and offer the bowlers something to work with. There's nothing worse that the myriad of flat tracks that have been dished up (culminating in high-scoring draws) in recent years that perpetuate the stereotype that test cricket is boring.