Mark Waugh could scarcely contain his surprise in Melbourne last month when it was put to him that batting in the modern age is harder than it has ever been.

Harder? Hardly, he spluttered during a chat prior to a Fox Cricket photographic shoot ahead of the Border Gavaskar Trophy series beginning in Perth on Friday.

Bats were bigger and their sweet spots sweeter. Ropes, rather than fences, served as the distinction between fours and sixes. Whereas back in Waugh’s day … well, you get it.

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The context surrounding the question stemmed from an answer from Australian coach Andrew McDonald a few days earlier when standing outside the MCG, near Dennis Lillee’s statue, to discuss the summer ahead.

Amid discussions about the relative paucity of runs from Australia’s top order in recent seasons compared to the bountiful decade before, McDonald said conditions were tougher now. And since that discussion, a number of batters have backed the former all-rounder.

Steve Smith, Australia’s “best since Bradman”, opined that an 80 now was the equivalent of a top century a few years ago. Those who have fallen in the ‘nervous 90s’ would have loved that to be the case!

Usman Khawaja declared the raised seam made the ball rounder and that pitches were “more divoty” now than when he was first making his way on the Australian domestic scene.

Marnus Labuschagne and co blame the modern-age Kookaburra, which has a hardier layer of lacquer to keep the brand shining brightly, along with a seam that does not fray.

Matt Renshaw, who went from the reserve batter for the Australian tour of New Zealand at the end of last summer to being out of contention in the battle to replace David Warner by mid-October, agrees.

The Age reported earlier this week that since 2020, captains have opted to bowl first in 98 of the 134 Sheffield Shield matches that have been played given their view that conditions for batting are more testing.

The views of Fox Cricket’s panel of experts diverge on the matter. Some are sympathetic to the plight of those wielding the willow. Others suspect a new age has brought bad habits.

Ravi Shastri, who played alongside legends including Sachin Tendulkar and coached India with great success against Australia, was succinct when quizzed at the Fox Cricket launch in Melbourne on Tuesday.

“Why should it get harder? It’s the quality of the batsman as well. If the batting line up is good, you should get runs,” he said.

Waugh, who made batting look easy in even the most testing of conditions when in full flight, granted a concession once he had picked himself back up off the floor of the Pullman Hotel.

It was only a marginal one, though, with the Australian great stating that perhaps batters were finding it more difficult now because there was a touch more spice in the pitches.

“I would say (over) the past couple of years, the pitches actually have had a bit more in them for the quicker bowler, the last two seasons,” he told foxsports.com.au.

“Before that, I think the pitches were pretty bland. Is it harder to make runs these days? They have got bigger bats and smaller boundaries and the DRS, which I think favours the batters.

“There is always something that is not quite right with the delivery. It might be too high. Or it has hit him outside the line. I don’t know. I will probably rub up the modern day players the wrong way if I said it was easier now than when we played. You still have to play well.

“But I would say the last couple of seasons in Australia, in particular, the pitches have had a bit more in them for the quicker bowlers, who would be pretty happy about that, because we did see some bland pitches in the years before that. I think it is a good balance at the moment.”

Having faced the fast and furious pace of West Indian legends during their reign of terror, Allan Border could be forgiven for making a point of order or two about how good today’s generations have it.

The former Australian skipper said he relied on his memory and the nous of his bowlers when plotting a plan to undo opposition stars in domestic and international cricket.

In an era where the Walkman was considered peak technology, cricketers relied on the eye to decipher a flaw.

But with the explosion in matches screened around the world and the remarkable advance in analytics, every tic from the time a batter is most likely to scratch their nose to the delivery they are most prone to getting out to is available for anyone who wants it.

As a case in point, Kayo Sports has unveiled HyperLayer technology that will be used throughout the Border Gavaskar Trophy Series. It will provide subscribers with the most comprehensive insights yet seen in cricket.

Unlike traditional ball speed measurements, HyperLayer uses six cameras tracking at 250 frames per second to capture every phase of the ball’s journey — from bowler to pitch to batter.

Across an estimated 540 deliveries each day of Test cricket, the setup produces 810,000 frames of data daily, unlocking unprecedented levels of detail and analytical depth, not just for the current season but also with historical data, a Foxtel release noted this week.

It is only part of a new series of technological advancements being used in the broadcast. And Border believes the advancements are making life far harder for batters.

“There’s so much homework done on you as a batsman, about where to bowl,” he said.

“That used to come more naturally with captains. You’d remember people and go, ‘Oh, this guy. He’s good on the off-side. He’s going to go through the covers.’ Or whatever it was. You instinctively knew.

“But now there’s so much footage of you batting on all sorts of services, against all sorts of bowlers, so you’re analysed. So from that point of view, yes, (it is harder).”

Ashes winning English captain Michael Vaughan said the superb quality of those delivering the ball should not be underestimated either.

The Australian attack is arguably the most complete cricket has seen, with all four front-line bowlers securing at least 250 Test wickets leading into the Border Gavaskar Trophy.

Vaughan, too, rates stand-in Indian skipper Jasprit Bumrah as arguably the world’s premier bowler given his brilliance in all three formats. It is, he said, part of a broader trend.

“I think we forget to mention that there is an era, or a generation, of really good skilful bowlers who have played in the last few years. In terms of seam bowlers and pace, there are plenty of (good bowlers) out there across the world,” he said.

“You could argue there is not quite as much spin as there was back in the days. But I think in terms of the quality of the seam that these players are facing, we almost skip a generation to think the old boys, the old players, are better than they are now, because I think what we have seen across the last few years some are outstanding seam bowlers across all the different types of attacks around the world.”

Vaughan suspects the massive growth of white ball cricket has had an impact. Philosophies associated with Test cricket have changed as well. ‘Bazball’ is referenced so often it has become a cliche. India likes to put the foot forward, and to the floor, in Tests.

Strike rates seem to have become as important as averages when considering a batter in the eyes of some.

“I guess the way that the game is played now, which is more on the front foot to try and score and to be a bit more aggressive, that throws the mentality in terms of not seeing off a bowler or not seeing off a spell or not seeing off a moving ball,” Vaughan said.

“They all try to score and get on top of the bowlers, which I guess brings opportunities for the bowlers and the fielding side. But I do think we have had a few years where bowling has been exceptional. There has been a real quality of bowling attacks around the world and that makes it quite difficult for the batters.”