„The players, the board and the coaches will turn to where the money is,” he said of the clash between the Test and T20 leagues.
PTI and ESPNcricinfo staff
Annoyed that India and South Africa only played a two-match Test series, former South Africa captain AB de Villiers attributed the rise of T20 leagues.
South Africa and India won the first Test at Centurion by an innings and 32 runs, while the visitors won the second Test by seven wickets.
De Villiers argued for a longer Test series and reckoned „something has to change” if the world's best team is to be identified.
„I am not happy that there is no third Test. You have to blame T20 cricket around the world for that,” he said on his YouTube channel. „I don't know who to blame, but I feel something is wrong. If we want to see all the teams compete and see who is the best Test team in the world, something has to change.”
South Africa are set to play a two-Test series in New Zealand next February. However, eyebrows were raised when Cricket South Africa (CSA) announced the second line-up for the series due to a clash with SA20. Neil Brandt, who is yet to make his Test debut, has handed over the captaincy of the team.
The Test matches will coincide with the second season of the SA20, which is scheduled to run from January 10 to February 10, with most South African cricketers playing in the tournament.
De Villiers feels that Test cricket is under pressure and admitted that players and coaches are opting for higher paying matches over the five-day format.
„This (South Africa's Test squad for New Zealand) has sent shock waves across the cricketing world and made it clear that Test cricket is under pressure, for that matter ODI cricket and the whole system revolves around T20 cricket.
„The players, the board and the coaches will turn to where there is more money. You can't blame them for thinking about their future with their families.”
Cape Town surface 'pretty stock-quality'
The surface for the second India-South Africa Test came under intense scrutiny after the match ended less than two days – the shortest in the history of Test cricket. There were concerns about the quality of the pitch in Cape Town but de Villiers described the surface as „pretty stock-standard”.
„It was a pretty stock-standard wicket, in my opinion. I remember jumping there on the first day,” he said. „If you can get through the session from the first day, it becomes easier. If you see the players playing their shots and not hanging around, they are doing well. I remember Ben Stokes scoring a double hundred there. I scored a few. Hundreds there.
Bowlers like Vernon Philander, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj, Kagiso Rabada cannot be allowed to continue bowling off stump.
„Całkowity introwertyk. Nieprzejednany specjalista od sieci. Przyjazny fanatyk bekonu. Student ekstremalnych. Miłośnik piwa. Organizator.”