The onward march of T20

[swingdog]

News this morning that Saudi Arabia wants to run the richest T20 league:

Saudi Arabia seeks to set up world’s richest cricket competition

Saudi Arabia is wooing IPL owners and India’s cricket board with the goal of creating a Twenty20 league that only the IPL could rival for financial scale.

www.theage.com.au

Interesting to see when it would run - probably November-December as the weather is bearable then. Just in the middle of Australia's Test season....

 

[Around the Wicket]

Milk the gravy train as long as you can because T20 won't last outside 20 years

 

[swingdog]

Milk the gravy train as long as you can because T20 won't last outside 20 years

As much as I wish that were true, I doubt it.

 

[ioppolo]

Which division does the national team play in?

 

[akkaps]

Which division does the national team play in?

They rank 33rd in T20I cricket

Saudi Arabia won the 2023 ACC Men's Challenger Cup in Thailand, finishing undefeated to qualify for the 2023 ACC Men's Premier Cup in Nepal. The team defeated Bahrain in the tournament final by 10 wickets, after bowling Bahrain out for just 26 runs.[9]

 

[akkaps]

Saudi trying to get IPL and PSL owners to be part of the comp, as well as players.
Tell 'em their dreamin'

 

[scottywiper]

Money *s most things. Why should cricket be any different

 

[Gough]

Cricket joins the sportswashing bandwagon.

 

[Cmarsh]

Bizarre. Is cricket even remotely popular in Saudi Arabia?

 

[largebus]

Bizarre. Is cricket even remotely popular in Saudi Arabia?

WWE and F1 aren't and they have events there every year. Oil money talks

 

[Around the Wicket]

Bizarre. Is cricket even remotely popular in Saudi Arabia?

Boxing isn't and it's where alot of the feature fights are going to end up years to come.

 

[akkaps]

WWE and F1 aren't and they have events there every year. Oil money talks

And Golf.

 

[largebus]

And Golf.

The AFL would put the season opener in Riyadh if the Saudis threw enough money at it.

 

[akkaps]

The AFL would put the season opener in Riyadh if the Saudis threw enough money at it.

UAE would probably try to outbid them to be honest

 

[ioppolo]

A couple of pre season games got played in Abu Dhabi or Dubai about 15 years back. I think Freo vs Collingwood might've been one.

 

[4Seasons]

Milk the gravy train as long as you can because T20 won't last outside 20 years

I understand grumpy old men don’t like T20, but if you think T20 is at risk, rather than Test Cricket, it’s extremely possible that you could be in for a nasty shock over this 20 year time frame you’re running with.

 

[juss]

Milk the gravy train as long as you can because T20 won't last outside 20 years

I reckon you're misreading the room a bit there....

 

[Around the Wicket]

I reckon you're misreading the room a bit there....

IPL I think will last, pretty good tournament, the rest won't last.

 

[juss]

IPL I think will last, pretty good tournament, the rest won't last.

IPL will probably be the leader of the pack, but outside of that players will still be keen to play, less toll on the body, good money, light schedule, and as long as the money keeps coming in it will succeed. T20 is perfect for TV audiences in primetime, short on demand content, live streaming services, etc. So as long a it appeals to broadcasters and they pay reasonable money for it, the format will keep ticking along strong, even if it's not the gold standard of cricket doesn't appeal to the purists (which in respect is probably more the aging demographic anyway).

 

[madmug]

IPL will probably be the leader of the pack, but outside of that players will still be keen to play, less toll on the body, good money, light schedule, and as long as the money keeps coming in it will succeed. T20 is perfect for TV audiences in primetime, short on demand content, live streaming services, etc. So as long a it appeals to broadcasters and they pay reasonable money for it, the format will keep ticking along strong, even if it's not the gold standard of cricket doesn't appeal to the purists (which in respect is probably more the aging demographic anyway).

The wringing of hands won't fix things. Pointless bitching about it, money is the thing. Money to whitewash the Oil regimes.

As if they care about cricket, or European soccer clubs, or their supporters or club history.

The fight may yet be between the Saudis & the IPL, where the money is.

The ICC, Australia, England, NZ, WI, SA will just be collateral damage.

We saw it before with 'Packer Cricket' in the late 70's. Its a disruptive technology if you like. Its how change occurs now days. Nothing we can do about it.

 

[swingdog]

Geoff Lemon sums it up:

Saudi Arabia’s grand sportswashing campaign comes to finish off cricket’s current order | Geoff Lemon

A lucrative T20 tournament is the country’s latest shameless attempt to forge a better reputation for itself – and it seemingly comes without care for the game itself

www.theguardian.com

Sent from my iPad using BigFooty.com

 

[akkaps]

My hope is that if T20 franchises do take over that these competition also take over the state leagues and cricketers would be playing FC, LA, and T20 cricket for one franchise around the world for the entire year.
For example, you’d be bought by the franchise. And represent the franchise.
I could see leniency if someone like a Chris Lynn, would finish his T20 stint for one franchise, and then go play for another T20 franchise (owned by the same owners) in a different country. Whilst others would continue to play FC and LA cricket for the original team

 

[11kgm]

'It's inevitable' - Moody, Shastri on IPL teams influencing world cricket

Both experts say continued T20 expansion may be especially harmful to the health of ODI cricket

www.espncricinfo.com

* off you campaigners

That is all

 

[big_e]

LI hope this idea never becomes a reality but it fear it will.

The podcast is worth a listen.

He talks of the need to make test cricket an event. He says he's been going to day one of the Lord's test for as long as he can remember - while Indian born, he was friends at Cambridge with Michael Atherton - but kids just aren't interested in tests. Plus it's 160 pounds a ticket at the Lord's test, which rules out a significant number of people.

I don't particularly like the idea but at least it's a conversation about the future of cricket. Most people's reaction is "I don't like it" and that's about it.

 

[swingdog]

My hope is that if T20 franchises do take over that these competition also take over the state leagues and cricketers would be playing FC, LA, and T20 cricket for one franchise around the world for the entire year.
For example, you’d be bought by the franchise. And represent the franchise.
I could see leniency if someone like a Chris Lynn, would finish his T20 stint for one franchise, and then go play for another T20 franchise (owned by the same owners) in a different country. Whilst others would continue to play FC and LA cricket for the original team

Why would franchise owners fund first class cricket? It loses money.