Twenty20 cricket has come to stay

That Twenty20 cricket has taken the world cricket scene by storm there is no doubt.

The Indian Premier League Twenty20 just concluded has been a resounding success, so much so that the organisers the Board of Control for Cricket is toying with the idea of having two tournaments per year.

They have already arranged for a Twenty20 league to be played in India in October.

This tournament has been one helluva of a money spinner, that the players are more keen on being selected to play this style of game, rather than the established game, Test cricket which is what the game is all about.

Unless the International Cricket Council does things to make Test cricket more lucrative to the players, I am afraid Test cricket will lose its appeal and it would not be long when more of the limited overs will be played and less Test cricket.

Also it is time that the ICC curtails the playing of this game more often. They should not blindly approve and make official every time some Cricket Board seeks permission to conduct a tournamet.

They are the guardians of the game and they must act with more responsibility. Money is not everything Lalit Modi, chairman and organiser of the IPL Twenty20 was a very happy man with the success of the IPL. With the tourney unable to be conducted in India due to security concerns, he shifted it to South Africa and then when everyone was questioning the shift, he organised it so well and executed that everyone including his critics were heaping praise on him.

The South African Cricket Board too rose to the occasion admirably and they provided wonderful hosts so much so that their cricket fans were shouting and asking that this tournament be played there next year too.

With the conclusion of the IPL Twenty20, soon will begin the ICC Twenty20 World Cup bash in England.

Reports have it that this tournament is going to be even better and greater than the IPL tourney, that from every indication was a resounding success in South Africa.

The ICC Twenty20 is going to break the records set by the IPL in that cricket fans in 218 countries will be able to watch the action and savour the success of their cricketing heroes.

ESPN who are sole telecasters of the ICC Twenty20 will beam the action to 218 countries. Unlike the IPL Twenty20 which was contested by just 8 teams, the ICC fling will be contested by countries and the interest is going to be electric and interesting.

ESPN has left no stone unturned to see to its success. So much so that they will provide commentary in 10 languages through Eurosport including Russian, French, German, Polish and Turkish as well as other languages.

There will be 12 teams vying for honours and the 17-day fling will see 27 matches being played at Lord's, Kennington Oval and Trent Bridge, Nottingham.

The telecasters will also show live some of the warm up games including the eagerly awaited clash between bitter rivals India and Pakistan at the Oval on June 3.

It is hoped that the summer will provide good weather in England and not prove a spoiler in some venues. England's weather is known to be fickle and the organisers will be praying that the games go on without a hitch.

The organisers have also spread out an impregnable security blanket and those playing and everyone else joining in the fun can take in the action without any fear.

The women's Twenty20 tournament too will be conducted simalteanously and this is the first time that the fair sex will get the best exposure and publicity ESPN has also signed on the best cricket commentators in the world in Nasser Hussain, David Lloyd, Sanjay Manjrekar, Harsha Bhogale, Alan Wilkins, Ian Bishop, Wasim Akram our own Ranil Abeynaike, Athar Ali Khan, Simon Doull. Jermey Coney and Kepler Wessels.

Teams who will provide the action have been arriving and when the first game is called `play' at Lord's, it will be cricket with a exciting flavour for 17 days with the final slated for Lord's on June 21.