Conrad opens fire on Test Cricket’s big 3 ahead of his side’s impending WTC Finals against Australia at Lords.
Conrad opens fire at Test cricket’s power bloc.
“I don’t think we need to do anything out of the extraordinary to beat Australia.”
He undoubtedly intended ordinary. However, there aren’t many aspects of Conrad’s strategy for the game that aren’t remarkable. He has elevated a mediocre squad with very few caps and even fewer stars to the verge of greatness. They now believe in themselves because of him. The dressing room is now a hub for ideas thanks to him. He has ridiculed Test cricket.
And with a shabby playing schedule at that. In the 2023–25 WTC cycle, only Bangladesh played as few matches as South Africa (12). To top the standings, the South Africans won eight games. Bangladesh finished eighth out of nine games with half as many victories. South Africa has won 10 of its 14 Test matches overall under Conrad. Two of their three losses were suffered by the SA20-ravaged side that went to New Zealand in February 2024.
The Big Three’s refusal to play other teams as frequently as they play each other, motivated by money and self-interest, benefited the South Africans. Conrad’s troops are therefore in the final even though they haven’t played Australia or England, either at home or away, or gone on a tour to India. Who is to blame for that? Not in South Africa. Not those of the ICC. Put the responsibility on the Big Three instead. Two of them now appear ridiculous.
The fact that a team as distinctly un-Big Three as New Zealand should have won the first WTC final, held in Southampton in June 2021, was embarrassing enough for all three of them. Two years later, when the Aussies won at the Oval, some semblance of decency was restored.
But the fact that the biggest of the Big Three, India, were beaten in both finals – and aren’t even in it this year – can only help drive significant change in the competition’s format in future.
“I think only in their own minds have they dubbed themselves the Big Three. I don’t think anybody else has. We certainly don’t respect Pakistan less than we do Australia, or India.
I don’t think it’s a big anything. New Zealand went to India and beat them three zip. Sri Lanka won a Test match in England. West Indies won a Test in Australia. So are they really the Big Three?”
All of those results were achieved between January and November last year – firmly in the Big Three era. That, by Conrad’s logic, is a wake-up call.
“We need strong Test cricket, which is the lifeblood of the game around the world. The other formats rely on Test cricket. It’s still a shop window for a lot of players who want to make it in the other formats. So the ICC needs to take this in hand and ensure that the global Test game is looked after, rather than attend to the whims and fancies of a few nations.”