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Cricket in the 21st century: 25 ways the game has changed

Wisden Cricket Monthly has celebrated its landmark 100th edition by compiling a comprehensive list detailing one hundred modern shifts within the sport, splitting them into fifteen positive gains and ten losses. A prominent focus of this retrospective is the evolution of seam bowling, particularly how athletes lacking raw velocity have adapted through techniques like the wobble seam.

This deceptive delivery, initially mastered by Stuart Clark before being utilized by Stuart Broad, allows resourceful operators such as Vern Philander, Mohammad Abbas, Scott Boland, and Sam Cook to exploit the pitch. Dubbed the dirty seam by bowling coach Troy Cooley, this approach has contributed to a broader trend of declining batting averages and increased dominance by bowlers.