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Twenty20 Finals Day
By Will 2 months ago, No Comments; be the first!
Even the ECB clerk who first pondered the idea of Twenty20 must be wondering what monster he has unearthed. As we approach the sixth Twenty20 Finals Day in England, the stakes are higher than ever; the amount of money vaguely ludicrous. And no one really knows what the bloody hell is going on.
What the bloody hell is for certain, of course, is the loot. There’s a weeny cheque for £42,000 for the winners of the Twenty Cup, but the real cash cow grazes in Texas: Allen Stanford, everyone’s favourite moustachioed billionaire, has offered the winners of this year’s tournament to challenge England ahead of the Stanford Sugardaddy Superstar Slogathon later this year. There is a reported £30,000 on offer for each of the winning XI should the county beat England.
In addition, of course, there’s the Champions League - that monstrous tournament featuring domestic Twenty20 winners from Australia, South Africa, England and India - though, as usual, there is some doubt as to whether this will take place. The winners of that particular cash whale is £2.5m. Kent and Durham, two of the semi-finalists for tomorrow, are ineligible because they have fielded players who have represented the nasty, evil Indian Cricket League, and Lalit Modi simply won’t accept anything but the purest of pure, as though the ICL has tainted their souls.
It’s a remarkable moment for cricket, this, but also equally uncertain. Announcements from counties, from the ECB - from Allen himself - are all last-minute. Negotiations are constantly ongoing and “in development”. Accusations are denied or refuted; amounts of money disputed or altered seemingly on a daily basis. There is an undercurrent of bubbling excitement fuelled by politics and uncertainty; driven by money. It’s amazing what a few noughts and pound-signs will do for the enthusiasm levels.
What is for certain, however, is four teams will do battle at The Rose Bowl - one of my least favourite grounds, I have to admit - tomorrow, and amid all the tension and pressure to win, it should be a cracking day for all: not least for the Mascot Race (I don’t know why I capitalised that) and David Lloyd’s infectious commentary. My money’s on Durham to beat Essex in the final, but don’t write Middlesex off - the greatest county in the land - especially with Dawid Malan in the side.
Anyway. Keep your eye on Cricinfo, and leave your thoughts on the madness in the comments below.
No Comments »Twenty20 Champions League
By Scott last year, at the start of September, 1 Comment »
Momentum is gathering for an international Twenty20 Champions League to take place involving teams from India, Australia, England and South Africa. This could be an interesting way to expand the game and also it would provide much needed financial stimulus to first-class teams, although there might be pressure on to include privately owned franchises as well.
I personally don’t care that much for the ultra-short version of the game, but as something that keeps the game in the public eye it can’t be a bad thing. What could be a bad thing is the conflict between first class teams and international boards over the availability of International players.
The joker in the pack is the Indian Cricket League. We live in interesting times!
1 Comment »