Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant
Former England batsman Kevin Pietersen expressed satisfaction on seeing Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma and Kolkata Knight Riders captain Eoin Morgan get fined for slow over rate in the Indian Premier League.
Pietersen said there is no room for delay in T20 cricket since it is an entertainment package that is supposed to be short and sharp.
"It sends out a great message to players that Rohit Sharma and Eoin Morgan were fined for their slow over rates this week," wrote Pietersen on his blog on betway.com.
"T20 cricket is an entertainment package. It's supposed to be short and sharp -- fours, sixes, wickets and misfields. And it's supposed to be done inside three hours," he added.
"I remember when I first played T20 games in 2004 that there was a timer up on the scoreboard and you had to complete your overs in that time. It was non-negotiable," Pietersen wrote further.
The South African-born Englishman said that fighting against time helps you to stop procrastinating and start making quick decisions while adding to the excitement of the T20 cricket format.
"When you know that you're fighting against that, you stop procrastinating and start making quicker, better decisions. It all serves the excitement and buzz of the spectacle," he added.
He said that pressure nowadays in T20 cricket forces captains to slow down games.
"I get why it happens. T20 cricket at the start wasn't particularly high-pressured, but when the money came in and careers were defined by the format then the pressure built up. Under pressure, captains want to slow the game down and bring it to their pace," he wrote.
"But in T20 cricket, that shouldn't be allowed. Hearing that two leading captains had been fined was music to my ears, and if fines don't work then I want to see runs penalties.
"Nothing should be off the table when it comes to speeding up the play, because it becomes so much harder to watch when it takes too long.
