Tariq Ali on Test cricket
Jonathan Liew writing in the Guardian (4th February) argues that English cricket is conservative and racist. He makes a very good point but one that is not entirely correct. There is in particular significant support for cricket from people of Asian origin (the same is true in the US) and while some may well be conservative they are certainly not racist.
Reading Tariq Ali’s recent memoir You Cant Please All (Verso) I noted a chapter in cricket. He argues that T20 cricket is essentially the equivalent of the football penalty shoot-out. Another view might be that in fact the equivalent is the T20 super over.
He is however a fan of Test cricket. He writes: ‘Test matches can be tenser and more stimulating than any other form of even when they end in a draw- a possibility that is excluded in shorter forms..’
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