That's unfair to touring teams!

A Test match especially one played between two skilful and evenly matched teams like Australia and India is appropriately named Each game is a searching test of the players skill cricket intelligence and courageIn the first Test at the Adelaide Oval it also became a test of everyones patience while Cheteshwar Pujara was in a state of glacial progress at the creaseNevertheless it was the lead up to the Adelaide match where the players courage was in the spotlight The rash of concussion subs resulting from blows to the head is on the rise and its looming as a major headache for cricketReplacing a concussed player is not such a perplexing problem during the pandemic because teams are carrying an extended squad However in normal times the touring party will be severely disadvantaged if they only have 15 players for a series while the home side can choose from a wider range of replacementsIt may be that when if things return to normal each team has to nominate a batting and a fast and spin bowling replacement before each match in case a concussion sub is requiredThat then raises the matter of likeforlike replacementsThis concept has already caused an international dispute when Indian allrounder Ravindra Jadeja was concussed while batting during a T20I and was replaced by legspinner Yuzvendra Chahal The heat rose in this argument when Chahal claimed three wickets and the player of the match award in Indias narrow victoryComplaining about a player not being a likeforlike replacement seems pointless its always going to be difficult to please all parties Its akin to driving in Sydney where you let a car into your lane because you know in five minutes time youll require the same courtesy from another commuterHowever just addressing the concussion sub issue doesnt get to the heart of the matter its the rising number of batsmen hit in the head that then leads to the need for a replacement playerFollowing the tragic death of Philip Hughes Cricket Australia conducted a safety review Incredibly this process didnt include technique which is the most important aspect of ensuring fewer batsmen receive blows to the head The time is ripe for a worldwide review into onfield safety it should include batsmen bowlers and umpires with batting technique a top priority In conducting this review it would be appropriate to strengthen any law regarding the protection of tailenders in facing shortpitched bowlingAny talk of completely banning the bouncer should be dismissed as quickly as bowlers removed New Zealand batting bunny Chris MartinThere were rumblings in the eighties about banning the bouncer when the West Indies were dominating This wouldnt have slowed the West Indies superiority but it wouldve resulted in regular batting exhibitions which are boring to watch and commentate onSuch a change would also create problems for umpires in adjudicating on a nobouncer lawOften batsmen duck into a short ball and get hit Many times a ball only bounces between waist and chest height but still hits a batsman in the head because hes taken his eye off the ball and ducked Will Pucovskis latest concussion is a case in pointBanning the bouncer would place even more responsibility on the already overburdened umpires In reality if a toporder batsman gets hit hes to blame not the bowler A fast bowler is attempting to disrupt the batsmans footwork and his thinking hes not deliberately trying to cause an injuryThat said with concussion replacements now mandatory there could be the temptation to bombard the oppositions best batsmen in the hope of having him replaced by a lesser player In this case umpires would need to remind the bowlers their job is to dismiss batsmen not dismember themThe thing to remember in any discussion on bouncers is the cricketers adage if you dont want to get hurt then dont walk through the gateClayton Murzellos column Pavilion End will be back next weekThe views expressed in this column are the individuals and dont represent those of the paper