The one-day series in New Zealand is testimony to the amazing pace at which
this form has shed its complexity, rid itself of formula and arrived at a
simplicity that might, in the end, bring about its own ruin. A couple of
years ago, the complaint against the 50-over game was that it had become
too predictable, with a beginning, middle and end that, like Greek drama,
followed a pattern. The technical committee of the ICC then went about
introducing some complexity - the revolving substitute, the Powerplay -
which it hoped would shake the game up and make it more interesting.

However it is not legislation that is pushing one-day cricket now, but the
influence of Twenty20 that is making it advance to the past. Rather
abruptly, the game has been reduced to its simplest terms - hit into the
stands. And the ease with which batsmen do this is making a mockery of
tactics, field placings and bowling plans. There might be a shakeout soon
enough, with bowlers righting the balance with something new - but history
is against them. Bowlers haven’t had as much of an influence in the
shorter game as they’ve had over Test cricket.

In a sense, this is going back to the future, at least where Indian
cricket is concerned. In the 1970s, when India were reluctant players of
the then new one-day format, batsmen played as if hitting sixes and
boundaries was all that the game was about. Other countries had already
worked out that singles were important, and by the 1980s, Bob Simpson, the
Australian coach had demonstrated that reducing the number of dot balls
was crucial. Slog overs were designated thus.

Bowlers, especially medium pacers in the early days, focused on not giving
away runs rather than taking wickets. Then came the pinch hitter. But all
these changes took time. Generally, it was the World Cup that showcased
new tactics, which meant that the game evolved gradually over four years,
and then got it all together on its biggest stage.

But now Twenty20 has accelerated change, and appropriately enough, it is
India, the world champions who are spearheading the new revolution. They
have used the essence of the new format - with its frenetic hitting - and
adapted it to the one-day international. It has worked so well that the
threat of the extinction of the ODI has become very real.

For, if the 50-over game is identical to Twenty20, then one of
the two formats will become redundant, and the one most likely to be scrapped is the longer version. Survival for the three formats depends to a large
extent on keeping themselves distinct, separate from one another.

Can we really say all this after just a handful of matches? Yes, sometimes
you see a world in a grain of sand.