Who said it was a batsman's game? Bangladesh are currently doing what Bangladesh do very well - that is, losing lots of wickets in a heap. Over in Brisbane, 36 wickets went down in the first three days on what was previously considered a flat track bully pitch. Oh, and let's not forget England who must be setting some kind of record in getting bowled out within their allotted 50 overs, despite having a batting line-up that apparently goes further down than a depth charge. As for Zimbabwe, well let's not even go there.

India were 29-3 in the second ODI against England but there was something in the mindset of the hosts (and visitors) which indicated that one was playing a natural game and the other was afraid to press home the advantage. Risk management companies, eh? Don't you just hate them? Peter Moores keeps talking about aggression, but how does that relate to actual performances. Wickets are tumbling through England's conservatism.

New Zealand, having had Australia on the rack, then gave back the initiative straight away, as they did in the Test series against England home and away earlier. The Kiwis will never get a better chance to kick the Aussies while they were down. It is not healthy for the game when the world champions are bowled out for 200 in the first innings and then still win the game at a canter. Daniel Flynn's call for the top six to stand up fell on deaf ears. Whatever happened to Geoff Boycott's maxim: "You'll get me out over my dead body?"

Think back to the first day of the Ashes in 2005 when 17 wickets tumbled. It was crazy, but was it enjoyable? Well. Not for the administrators who thought the game might not go into Sunday. Or for the home support who knew that England had blown their big chance on day one. Test Cricket is supposed to have dramatic passages of play mixed with quieter ones of toil and chess. It does not work well as a fast track game.

It is almost embarrassing to call Bangladesh and Zimbabwe Test nations, such is their inability to last three days. The West Indies will always find ways of collapsing, the speed of which depends on how Shiv Chanderpaul is feeling at any one time. South Africa were so bored of scoring runs against the Bangladeshis that they could afford to chuck away wickets and still win by an innings.

Of all the Test nations, only the Indians appear to be easy on the eye at the moment. Everybody else is looking vulnerable and world weary.

The ideal contest is a fair one between bat and ball, but there is too much emphasis on winning the toss and exploiting conditions. What other sport can rely so heavily on a coin? Moreover, if there is a bit of juice in the pitch, modern batsmen don't appear to have the graft or skill to deal with it. It is almost as if Simon Katich and Neil MacKenzie are a bit of a throwback as openers who wear you down.

Nobody wants to see wicket less sessions on soft featherbeds, but the game needs more of a balance between good batsmanship and probing bowling to remain truly captivating.

Tim Ellis