The International Cricket Council (ICC) is seriously deliberating on tweaking the use of two new balls in One-Day Internationals (ODIs). Since the last two years, the ICC has been contemplating implementing this rule since they want to create an equal balance between bat and ball. The existing rule does not provide fast bowlers with any swing as the ball changes in each innings after 25 overs.
With the game already being heavily favored for the batters, with smaller bat sizes and batting-friendly pitches, the ICC is keen to tweak the rule and help bowlers find success in ODIs. The move to tweak the second new ball in ODIs is understood to be a suggestion from the ICC's cricket committee. The two-ball rule saw the bowling side start with two new balls but only use one ball from the 25-over mark.
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The bowling side was given the power to choose which of the two balls to continue with. It is to be noted that the ICC is not completely scrapping the two new rules in existing Playing Conditions (PCs) but is planning to bring reverse swing back. Many experts are calling the two-ball rule to be heavily loaded in favor of batters. Sachin Tendulkar openly criticized this rule as a recipe for disaster.
"Having two new balls in one day cricket is a perfect recipe for disaster as each ball is not given the time to get old enough to reverse. We haven't seen reverse swing, an integral part of the death overs, for a long time," Tendulkar had famously said in a social media comment some years ago.
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ICC planning to introduce clocks in playing conditions for Test matches
Another rule ICC is contemplating implementing is the introduction of clocks in playing conditions for Test matches with a 60-second upper limit between each over. Clocks are already seen in white-ball formats, and there is a major success in teams maintaining over rate and games finishing quicker than before.
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Also, ICC is planning to shift the Men's Under-19 World Cup from 50-over to the T20 format. While some believe it should be played in a longer version, some believe T20 is the right way to go, as the Women's Under-19 World Cup is already being played in T20 format. All the proposed rules are set to be discussed during the ongoing ICC meetings in Zimbabwe.
