Hayden joins Gilchrist, calls to dump Packer's legacy

Sydney, Dec 1 (UNI) Cricket Australia has decided to review the format of the one-day triangular series at home after opening batsman Mathew Hayden joins his teammate Adam Gilchrist to raise his voice to scrap such tournaments.

''I think the system has got a little bit tired as far as the tri-series is involved. If you've got a decreased number of games but a highly competitive tournament it's an asset,'' Hayden was quoted as saying by Sydney Morning Herald.

CA will also consider the structure of the future summer games, which might see the triangular one-day series being replaced by two head to head series of five games each against the visiting sides.

He believes that Australia's dominance in international cricket has led to the falling crowds and dead games.

''Towards the back end of the tri-series if one side, like Australia has done for a long time, has dominated the competition there does seem to be a lot of dead-rubber games.'' ''As a fan you want to be seeing a highly competitive match with a lot riding on it. I believe you can get just as much of that from having a five-match series.'' Such series were the concept of cricket revolutionary Kerry Packer but since his death two years ago there have been mounting calls for it to be discontinued and replaced by a shorter, sharper format.

Recently voted as Australia's all-time greatest one-day cricketer, Adam Gilchrist, had also said that it was hard for players and supporters to maintain their interest over such a long period.

Gilchrist also pointed to the lack of crowd when the home team was not playing.

''In recent years, the clashes that haven't featured Australia, where they have featured two touring teams, have probably not been quite as popular as in previous years,'' Gilchrist had said.

This summer, Australia will host a triangular one-day series that will feature India and Sri Lanka as a part of the Kerry Packer's legacy product.

UNI