Split innings will spice up one-dayers, says Tendulkar

Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar in Kolkata in this June 2, 2009 file photo. Sachin Tendulkar wants one-day cricket to be split into two innings of 25 overs each to bring more balance into the matches.

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Sachin Tendulkar wants one-day cricket to be split into two innings of 25 overs each to bring more balance into the matches.

The premier Indian batsman, who holds the records for most one-day runs and hundreds, backed the format despite doubts whether it would survive Twenty20's increasing popularity.

"I'm for 50-over cricket," he told Times Now channel on Friday at a bat endorsement function. "I was thinking of probably 25 overs each to start with and again you go and play 25 overs."

Tendulkar recalled the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy final in Sri Lanka where the hosts batted their full innings for two days in a row only for rain to force the match to be abandoned on both times. The teams were declared joint winners of the tournament.

"This is also because in certain places, in day-night matches the conditions are completely different when you bat or bowl second," he said.

"So both sides (will) get to bat when the lights are not on. Then both bat when the lights are on, 25 overs," he said. "So it is not so heavily dependent on toss."

In the Indian sub-continent, slow pitches can render chasing a target tough or dew in the night can make fielding difficult in the later stages.

The debate over one-day cricket's future has intensified after the England board last month dropped 50-over cricket from the domestic calendar for the next season.