Lance Klusener believes the two-tier formula in Test cricket will benefit the game’s longest format. “Test cricket with two divisions will work,” said the former South African all-rounder.
Here as the coach of Lyca Kovai Kings, one of the eight teams in the India Cements-TNPL Twenty20 competition, Klusener is excited at the prospect of guiding lesser known players and watching cricket in the districts. “India’s next star could emerge from the smaller centres,” he said in a conversation with The Hindu here on Wednesday.
Klusener is also the batting coach of Zimbabwe. “When Zimbabwe played New Zealand recently, it was only the second Test for the team in two years. The gap between the two sides was obvious. It is very hard to build a Test side when you play so few games.”
He added, “If you have say five teams in the second division of Tests, including teams such as Ireland and Afghanistan, it would make the entire scene very competitive. Zimbabwe and the other teams would play each other more often. And every year you could have one team going to the top division and one team coming down. So teams will have something to play for.”
Speaking on dayight Tests and the pink ball, Klusener said, “I have my apprehensions. There is a lot of difference in the conditions between day and night. One team could suffer because of this. The dew factor may play a huge role, the ball skids on. The pitch favours spinners during the latter stages of play in the day. At night, the spinners could struggle.”
Klusener observed, “While it is important to bring the crowds back to Tests, we have to take so many other factors into account.
“There will be changes in temperatures. The pink ball tends to move more for the pacemen under the lights. Fielding under the lights is easier but slip catching isn’t.”
On the issue of the South African government wanting to see more black Africans in the cricket team, Klusener said, “If you look at the team now, Rabada picks himself. And you cannot say Bavuma has kept somebody extremely talented out of the team. He is a decent bat.
“Sometimes people like to cite these things as an excuse for disappointing performances.
“That is not the case in reality. There is plenty of talent among black Africans.”
And Klusener had an interesting take on Pakistan performing well in England and getting to the World No. 1 spot in Tests.
“The Pakistanis play and practice much in UAE where the ball swings quite a lot.
“This perhaps is the reason they have coped with the swing capably in England.”
