da betobet： Andrew Symonds is the latest Australian to give Twenty20 a lukewarmresponse
Andrew McGlashan in Cape Town19-Sep-2007
Andrew Symonds: another reluctant participant© Getty Images
Andrew Symonds is the latest Australian to give Twenty20 a lukewarmresponse the day after Adam Gilchrist said he wasn’t enjoying theformat too much as a player. Australia face a must-win match againstSri Lanka at Newlands to stay in the tournament, having already beenbeaten by Zimbabwe and Pakistan.The team moves on to India for a seven-match one-day series followingthe World Twenty20 and the feeling persists that the Australians arenot seeing this tournament as a major part of their season. “It’s probably like a sort of conditioning for us,” Symonds said. “We’ve hada four-month lay-off period and it has been a good way to move backfor the seven matches in India.”For a team used to ruling the roost, Australia’s advantage has been shrunk in the shortened game, something that has affected theirmindset. “It’s a frustrating game because you can be beaten by thelesser sides and they have to be good for a shorter period of time,” Symonds said. “That’s why he [Gilchrist] is probably finding itfrustrating and I’d probably have to agree with him as well.”We realised early on that the shorter the game is the bigger chance of the lesser sides beating the bigger sides. So I suppose it meansyou have to play well for your full 20 overs. Over the course of threeor four overs the game can turn on its head which is why people areenjoying it so much. It doesn’t become such a one-sided affair and the underdog can [come out on top].”Asked whether he was enjoying the experience, Symonds paused beforeadding: “It’s a different type of enjoyment. At least in one-daycricket you have a chance of working your way back into the game and in Test cricket over a much longer period. I’ll have to play more ofit to see how much I really enjoy it.”Symonds was expected to be well-suited to Twenty20 with his awesomestriking power, useful bowling and sharp fielding, but he hasn’t quite hit the heights so far. In three innings he has made 64 runs (although his strike-rate is a handy 142) and he’s bowled 8.1 overs for 76. “Anyball can go out of the park so you need a bit of luck and it makes bowling quite difficult,” he said. “Your skills are really put to thetest, especially for a part-time bowler.”He is realistic enough to realise that Twenty20 is rapidly growing andis only going to expand over the next few years. But although the manner in which he plays may suggest otherwise, Symonds remains atraditionalist and hopes that, however powerful Twenty20 becomes, itdoesn’t detract from the other formats.”With the other bodies coming in it is going to make the cricketing world very competitive and the best players are going to be heavilysought after. Hopefully we don’t lose the purist’s side and traditionalside but by the same token I think it will be healthy if cricket goes into the echelons of where soccer is going. But Test cricket is theultimate challenge.”