There had been other attempts at shortened, innovative formats before, like cricket Max in New Zealand, the brainchild of the great Kiwi batsman Martin Crowe. In Cricket Max extra runs were second for hitting the ball in certain areas, Max Zones, and ultimately that was the game’s problem. It was tricked up. It was not the game people were familiar with and kind of complex thing. Cricket max was invented back in 1996 and still it is not that popular and ultimately results as a floop version of cricket. Twenty20 was a shocking aberration to many but at least it was the same game people were used to.
The launch of Twenty20 in the English summer of 2003 was accompanied by a host of marketing gimmicks. Some, like mascots and music, were borrowed from other sports but others were way out of left-field like Worcestershire’s boundary-side Jacuzzi where spectators could splash around while the action took place on the field. Just as the fully professional English domestic game, with is commercial necessities, had invented limited-overs cricket in the 1960s to bring the crowd in, so Twenty20 was born out of desperation as a way of luring crowds back to county cricket. Lengthy and expensive market research by the England and wales Cricket Board had told them that plenty of people were well-disposed towards cricket but felt the game took too long and did not take place when they could watch it. So Twenty20 was devised.
The widespread skepticism of the new format was blown away by the sight of packed grounds and enthused players. It was not to everybody’s taste but it was certainly a success. In 2004, the second year of competition, Lord’s was sold out to a 28000 capacity for the London derby between Middlesex and Surrey. The ground had not been full for a county match (apart from cup finals) since the 1950s. The game sprung some surprises, boost business of every kind whether its live streaming or cricket live score app every product related to cricket is boosted to maximum extent. While the emphasis, of course, is on big hitting and pacing the live scoreboard with every ball it is not simple a slogger’s charter. Batsmen like Sri Lanka’s Tillakaratne Dilshan, whose deft flick-shot over the shoulder on bended knee became known as the ‘Dilscoop’, are as much a part of the game as the power-hitters like the West Indian left hander Chris Gayle who created a storm when he said ahead of a Test tour of England that he ‘wouldn’t be so sad’ if tests died out.
And whereas the nagging medium-pacers held sway for many years in 50 over cricket the best Twenty20 bowlers are smart-thinking spinners with good changes of angle and pace or those with extreme pace. With only four overs to get through in a match, a quick bowler can gene it everything without worrying if he will have to bowl 20-odd overs in a day as in a test match. So just as the one day game infused test cricket with new urgency, so the 20 over format has brought innovation and new thinking.
