Do We Really Need T20 International Cricket?

India had won the inaugural edition of T20 Cricket World Cup in 2007

Everything transforms with time. So has cricket. In its history of almost 150 years, cricket too has come a long way. From Test cricket to ODI cricket, colored uniforms, use of white balls, advent of day-night matches, use of drop-down pitches, cricket has changed a lot in all these years..

But no change ever impacted cricket the way the advent of T20 cricket did. The start of T20 cricket marked a new era in the history of cricket. Despite being the youngest format of cricket, it has grown in leaps and bounds.

It has revolutionized the sport like never before and has made cricket a sellable quantity across the globe. For those who thought of cricket as mundane and an excessively lengthy sport, the T20 format brought an option of 4 hours of exciting and flashy cricket. Here’s our quick cricket tips and guide for you. Please do check it here our site.

It has proven to be the most generous format of cricket. T20 has provided for almost every stake holder of this sport and came as a hope for players who were on the fringes of the sport. It gave them a platform to rub their shoulders with the best at the highest levels. It also created a huge influx of money. As per a report, Indian Premier League (IPL) accounted for approximately half of BCCI’s total revenue in 2018 and is seemingly growing with each passing year.

However, T20 cricket has been held responsible for deteriorating the game of cricket as well. There has been a never-ending debate about how this format has made the competition unfair between bat and ball. How it is not ‘real cricket’ and so on. It is believed that T20 cricket has taken away the charm of cricket and has turned it into a commodity. Statistically the viewership of Test cricket and ODIs has suffered because of T20 cricket.

The grandeur of T20 is bigger every year and the list of sponsors, advertisers and broadcasters seems endless. It has expanded its reach almost everywhere. Now, almost every cricket nation has a league of its own. Looking at the business expanse of T20 cricket and its craze among people, it is evident that T20 cricket will continue to flourish. Therefore, it is pertinent to ensure an ecosystem that provides space for T20 cricket to grow without stealing the thunder from Test and ODI cricket.

So, what can be done to ensure their coexistence? The answer to this can be the discontinuation of T20 internationals. I believe discontinuing T20 internationals can help in restoring the lost balance. The world doesn’t need T20 internationals when it already has opulent T20 leagues going around.

ODIs and Tests can survive without T20I. Let’s see how this idea can take shape and how it can impact the other facets of the sport.

1) More focus can be put on Tests and the revival of ODI cricket

Cricket broadly has two formats: limited-overs cricket and unlimited-overs cricket, and it is true that their sub categorization has only lowered viewers’ interest in traditional formats of the sport. Viewers have drifted towards the shorter and spicier version of the sport.

Fans cheer for their favorite players in T20 leagues irrespective of their nationalities. However, they really enjoy rooting for their respective countries when they face each other in international games. And it’s easier if it comes with less indulgence of their time. That’s why they now prefer to watch T20I over ODIs as they are less time consuming and are more fast-paced than the ODIs.

With no more T20 internationals, cricket fans will have nothing but to root for their countries in ODIs and Tests. Termination of T20I will define the confines of T20 cricket and traditional cricket separately. T20 and other traditional formats of cricket can live in different worlds and don’t need to interfere with each others functioning.

Moreover, with T20I cricket no longer on the yearly calendar, cricket boards will have more time and resources to focus on ODIs and Tests. The ICC can look upon reviving redundant tournaments like the Knockout Cup and re-plan such events to revive ODI cricket.

2) T20 leagues can help cricket reach the lesser known world

Cricket is mainly dominant among sub-continent countries, England and Australia. With only 12 test playing nations, its reach is confined to certain countries.

Almost every cricket board now has a T20 league of its own. India fancies the IPL every year. Likewise Australia, Windies, Pakistan organize BBL, CPL and PSL respectively every year. There are many more T20 leagues that happen across the world every year. There is already opulent T20 cricket going. The need to have T20I sometimes seems inessential.  Check the new PSL 2021 schedule here.

T20 leagues can prove handy in promoting cricket in places where this sport is not very popular. As T20s are short and exciting, they can prove to be a sample of actual cricket. It can inspire their aspiring newer generation to take up the beautiful game of cricket.

Tournaments like the Champions League (now redundant), where every country that sends its two league teams to the tournament, can help take cricket to offbeat destinations.

3) The value of donning the national cap will increase

T20 internationals have somewhat compromised the standards of representing the country. It often provides an easier way to the ultimate level of sport. A lot of players make their way into the ODIs on the basis of their performances in the T20 leagues but don’t last long.

Only the best thrive at the top. Those who make their way easily to the elite level and eventually fade, often dissolve the value of playing for their country. T20 cricket is very fickle in nature and sometimes very ordinary performances can bring players to limelight.

However, that is not the usual case in Tests and ODIs. A lot of players these days don’t intend to sweat out in domestic cricket. They don’t want to play any other form of cricket altogether. The end to T20I will ensure that performances in domestic cricket/List-A cricket continue to be the sole criterion for selection to the national side. Therefore, ousting T20 from international format will only help in assessing a cricketer’s performance better.  Their assessments will on the basis of performances in traditional formats- ODIs and Tests. Read our parimatch app review here.