How T20 Cricket Has Increased the Sports Popularity
Cricket is a quintessentially English sport, yet there are many people who find it to be boring and it has never managed to reach the popularity of sports like football and rugby. This is a shame as cricket is a brilliant sport which can be fantastic fun to play and is a good form of exercise that encourages you to be active and outdoors. Fortunately, cricket’s popularity has been on the rise in recent times and this is largely thanks to the introduction of T20 cricket.
What is T20?
T20, or Twenty20 cricket, is a shorter format of the game where both teams have a single innings each which is limited to a maximum of 20 overs. This was introduced 15 years ago and brought the sport to life for many. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the inter-county competition.
Here are a few reasons why it is proving to be so popular right now.
Shorter Format
First, T20 is much shorter than a regular test match which will appeal to those that find cricket matches go on for too long. This is one of the main complaints about cricket as the actual play can be hugely exciting but it can be hard to maintain this excitement over multiple days. The shorter format also makes it easier for people to pick up and play and there is a larger focus on scoring runs than you get in other forms of cricket.
A typical Twenty20 game is completed in about three hours, with each innings lasting around 90 minutes and an official 10-minute break between the innings. This is much shorter than a normal cricket game, and is closer to the timespan of other mainstream popular team sports.
Since it’s launch, T20 have proved a massive attraction to spectators and viewers on television
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Appeals To Children
Following on from this, the shorter format and focus on batting makes it particularly appealing to children and they can be terrific family events to attend. It can also be easy for kids to start playing with all of the equipment and gear that you need available from specialists.
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Tournaments Around the World
There are also many high-profile and glamorous T20 tournaments held all around the world each year which make them popular spectator events – a few of the more notable competitions include Big Bash, IPL and T20 blast and there are many big name players that dazzle the crowd with their ability whether this is impressive shots out the ground or dramatic catches on the boundary made by the fielders.
The game has spread so successfully around the cricket world that most international tours have at least one Twenty20 match and all Test-playing nations have a domestic cup competition.
Overall, T20 has revolutionized the sport of cricket and made it much more fun and accessible for the public. There are still loyalists that prefer the longer formats of the game, but T20 is now the most popular form and it is easy to see why with so much drama and excitement unfolding over 20 overs. Cricket is an excellent sport and it is good to see many young people now playing the sport and showing interest in the professional leagues whether this is attending a match or watching on television.
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