Two-day Test trap: Is hyper-aggressive cricket killing the five-day narrative?

The advent of Twenty20 has triggered a fundamental psychological shift in batting, redefining risk and reward as opposed to the value of a wicket. The earlier generations put a huge price on their wicket, but the current crop view big-scoring shots as an option to thrive under pressure.

Modern coaching methods now prioritise bat swing and power-hitting, making defensive techniques secondary. Previously, aspiring players learned defence first, as driving was seen as an extension of defence, but this focus has shifted. As a result, defence, the traditional hallmark of Test cricket, has become less emphasised. The result is that Test cricket has suffered the most. Modern-day Tests don’t go the distance.

With slight aid from the pitches, be it for pacers or spinners, most of the batters struggle to survive even one session. While the first two days of a Test match often progress slowly, with the pace increasing on the third day and leading to a conclusion on day 5, the Tests over the last few years go on overdrive from day 1 and stop long before reaching the final day, robbing the fans of some quality action.

Gone are the days of rearguard innings like VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid to win the Test against Australia in Kolkata in 2001. After being forced to follow on, Laxman and Dravid put on an epic match-winning 376-run partnership for the fifth wicket.

These knocks are far and few in between in the modern era. Since 2020, the average duration of a Test match has dropped to a little over three days, a massive drop in standards. In the past, a Test match would last six days, including a rest day after the third day’s play.

But these early finishes are forcing the governing body to contemplate a four-day Test. The fourth Ashes Test in Melbourne has lasted just two days, with England stunning Australia with a four-wicket win.

After losing the series 3-0, England batters made the most of the aggressive Bazball approach to overhaul the stiff target of 175 with ease and ended England’s 15-year wait for a win on Australian soil. The batters’ fearless approach, while reducing the duration of the contest, makes it extremely entertaining.

The entire Test finished in 141.2 overs, scoring 572 runs at an average of 4 runs and 36 wickets, the 10th fewest in Test history. In the past, a run-rate of 3 was considered very high, but in the last innings, England scored at the rate of 5.5, a run-rate teams would be proud of in One-Day Internationals before the advent of the Twenty20 format.

From 1980 to 2019, the two-day finishes were around 1.8 per cent, and a pitch inquiry would be ordered if such a result took place. But the last five years have seen a significant increase in the red-ball matches ending in two days to 6 per cent.

According to available data, there have been 27 men's Tests that have finished in two days in history, with several of those occurring in 2025. In 2024 alone, 13 Tests have ended in three days or fewer, while 51 out of 70 Tests were wrapped up under four days during the 2023-2025 World Test Championship cycle.

South Africa vs India in 2024 and the Perth and Melbourne Ashes Test during the current tour are some of the Tests that have finished inside two days. However, an aggressive approach is not new to Test cricket. 

The West Indians, under Clive Lloyd, used fearsome pacers to pummel their rivals from the 1970s to the 1990s. Australia took over the reins after the fall of the Caribbean Islanders and dominated the Test scene until the Twenty20 format allowed teams like India to shed their defensive mindset under the leadership of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma.

England have adopted the aggressive Bazball approach in Tests over the past few years and tasted immediate success, including a rare series win in New Zealand and Pakistan. This approach has caught on with other teams, and the net result is that there is no dull moment during the duration of a Test match.

Test cricket may no longer face the existential threat, as a holiday full house in Melbourne is proof of the argument. However, the aggressive approach must be sustained throughout the entire Test. Otherwise, it becomes another shorter format in whites.