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In recent times, first it was England test captain Ben Stokes and now it’s former South Africa captain Quinton De Kock.

Two examples of high-profile players retiring from the 50-over game. In the case of wicket-keeper batsman De Kock, he announced that he would retire at the end of the ODI World Cup.

With the example of England all-rounder Stokes, he retired from ODI cricket owing to scheduling.

With the World Cup on the horizon, he has been talked out of retirement and has reversed his decision.

Ben Stokes’ inclusion in the side has meant that Harry Brooks, a regular in the England side for the past 12 months is sweating on his place.

A team without the Durham man in it is one that’s weakened. I am sure there are many other examples, of players skipping ODI cricket to play in tests and T20.

These two examples (Stokes and De Kock) are the most high profile and highlight that multi-formats is potentially damaging the game.

Cricket players travel all around the world and in a packed calendar have little time to recover, which makes Ben Stokes’ decision to play in this World Cup surprising.

Stokes has been nursing a knee injury for some time. By the 32-year-old Stokes not playing in the ODI World Cup, he’s maintaining a body that has broken down a few times of late.

As mentioned before, test cricket and ODI cricket have been the foundations for the way the game has developed today.

Just in case you didn’t know, I can’t stand The Hundred! This is the killer of the modern game for the purists. We don’t do sets, we do-overs! This is not Flushing Meadows.

In an already packed calendar, it’s pulling away the top players from the big games. Too many players are missing the IPL, cricket’s flagship limited-overs tournament.

This doesn’t sit right that ODI cricket is cricket’s sacrificial lamb. In 2019, England won their first ODI World Cup.

Tournaments like The Hundred are damaging the game. Cricket without the ODI format is a game not worth playing.

If the best players are ditching the 50-over format, then what future does it have?

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