After sparingly watching the IPL over the past few months, how good is it to have Test cricket back?
Don’t get me wrong, the IPL is fun. It has its place in the cricket calendar and it’s undoubtedly become one of the biggest sporting competitions on the planet. It probably has a little too much gravitational pull over the game these days, but that’s what tends to happen when you have an almost unlimited supply of cash.
Still, after weeks of watching highlight packages from the tournament, it became increasingly difficult to stomach another six.
Every clip looked exactly the same.
Batsman swings. Ball disappears over the rope. Crowd erupts. Repeat 47 times.
It’s a bit like those people who watch the same movie over and over again and somehow still act surprised when the ending arrives.
But thank fuck, Test cricket is back.
While the current England vs New Zealand series hasn’t received anywhere near the build-up, marketing blitz or social media hysteria of the IPL, it has immediately reminded cricket fans why the longest format remains the game’s greatest challenge.
Most notably, bowlers are relevant again.
Instead of operating on what often resemble tennis-ball pitches designed specifically for maximum carnage, bowlers in this series have been allowed to actually bowl. Revolutionary concept, I know.
Day One alone produced 16 wickets, with only Harry Brook looking remotely comfortable at the crease. The ball moved, batters made mistakes and bowlers were rewarded for good deliveries.
Imagine that.
That’s the beauty of Test cricket.
As a batsman, you have to earn everything.
Every run feels valuable. Every session matters. Every mistake carries consequences.
There’s something deeply satisfying about watching a batter grind out an innings for three hours, surviving difficult conditions and picking off the occasional boundary every few overs. It requires patience, technique and concentration — qualities that don’t often make highlight reels but are at the heart of great cricket.
Compare that to watching bowlers disappear for 20 runs an over while commentators tell us we’re witnessing sporting genius.
The occasional six is exciting.
The 47th one in a highlights package tends to lose some of its magic.
As for the England-New Zealand series itself, I honestly don’t care who wins. England can win, New Zealand can win, they can somehow both lose if they really put their minds to it.
The result isn’t the point.
The point is that red-ball cricket is back on our screens. Bowlers have a fighting chance. Batters are being tested. Wickets actually matter.
And after a long IPL season, that feels like a breath of fresh air.
Welcome back, Test cricket. We’ve missed you.
