Australia batter Usman Khawaja feels the 50- over ODI format needs to be trimmed to a 40-overs-a-side game to make it more interesting given the ever-growing popularity of T20 cricket.

ODIs have been under pressure for over a decade now but no concrete suggestions have been offered on how to resurrect the format. The debate was rekindled in July when Ben Stokes announced he wouldn’t play ODIs any longer. Soon after that, India’s Ravichandran Ashwin said in a podcast that he would often switch off when an ODI match was on. Pakistan legend Wasim Akram said he found the format meaningless and tedious.

So what’s the solution? Khawaja, for one, feels a reduction in overs is the right way to go, having played in England’s Pro40s league a few years ago.

“50 overs is just that little bit too long now. Take out that little middle bit, you’d get to 25 overs and you’d look up and ‘oh crap, there’s only 15 overs left, let’s go again’,” he told ABC Sport.

“So you don’t have that little lull. That’s my only objection to one-day cricket.”

Leg-spinner Adam Zampa agreed with Khawaja, saying little adjustments can make 50-over cricket relevant again, with the ODI World Cup scheduled to be held in India next year.

“(They) either need to be scrapped or something needs to be done with them,” Zampa said.

Australia Test off-spinner Nathan Lyon suggested using one ball from both ends to ensure a level playing field for both batters and bowlers.

Many years ago, India great Sachin Tendulkar had suggested dividing the ODIgame into two 25-over innings for both teams.

Written with inputs from PTI