Will India Play Ball?

It8217;s summer. The schools are shut, the children sitting at home, the cricketers largely unemployed and the only cricket on TV is Pakist...

It8217;s summer. The schools are shut, the children sitting at home, the cricketers largely unemployed and the only cricket on TV is Pakistan8217;s tour of the West Indies series and Bangladesh waging a losing battle in English conditions.

Just the time, you8217;d think, to introduce Twenty20 to India. Pakistan have, and with terrific results: their inaugural Twenty20 tournament over the past fortnight pulled in the crowds, with up to 40,000 witnessing the final in Lahore despite the absence of any stars. And the US5,000 prize money ensured serious competition.

The dictionary defines twenty-twenty as normal visual acuity. But it seems that the Indian cricket board has turned a blind eye to the concept completely.

8216;8216;Twenty-twenty? What8217;s that?8217;8217; was BCCI president Ranbir Singh Mahindra8217;s reaction when asked about the possibility of a similar tournament in India during the off-season. When it was explained to him, he said, 8216;8216;I8217;d still like to put my money on the existing domestic circuit, try to improve the standards than something like Twenty20.8217;8217;

Besides having a long way to go 8212; the recent Ranji Trophy final between Punjab and Railways at Mohali drew not a single spectator 8212; Mahindra is missing the point. Twenty20 is not an alternative to Ranji, it is a money-spinning, space-filling form of entertainment. In smalltown India, with the right packaging, and by utillising the many stadiums that are silently rotting, it could be a hit.

8216;8216;They will come if the viewers enjoy what is being dished out. Moreover, television channels covering international matches should be forced to cover domestic games too,8217;8217;

A bigger hit if the obvious stars 8212; Sehwag, Dhoni, Yuvraj 8212; are roped in.

Hyderabad Cricket Association HCA secretary Shivlal Yadav feels so. 8216;8216;It will help the associations, it needs to be brought into Indian cricket soon.8217;8217; The HCA has invested millions in the newly built Visakha Stadium yet it usually goes empty.

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If nothing else, it8217;s great family entertainment, as Mumbai Cricket Association MCA joint secretary Ratnakar Shetty puts it. 8216;8216;It is more about an entertaining format of the game where families could come and watch matches that would be less time-consuming.8217;8217;

A survey in England when Twenty20 took off in 2003 said every third paying spectator had never been to a cricket match before. The numbers have only gone up since. Former Australian spinner Tim May, chief executive of the Australian Cricketers8217; Association, says it in typically Oz fashion: If you like the taste you buy the bottle and if you like the bottle you buy the case.

So who8217;s ready to do the bottling? Step up Lalit Modi, Rajasthan Cricket Association chief. 8216;8216;I am starting with it in Rajasthan. We have eight districts and it will be excellent to bring in this tinge of excitement,8217;8217; he says.

5 FIT FOR TWENTY20

Virender Sehwag
Even his mis-hits land somewhere near Row Z. Can field, can catch, can bowl his crafty offies
MS Dhoni
Can score 20 plus in an over. And keep wickets too
Yuvraj Singh
Quick off the mark, fast between the wickets and brilliant in the field. Bowling is almost an also-ran
Mohammad Kaif
Even Twenty20 needs someone to stick around. No big hitter but fast runner and great fielder
Harbhajan Singh
The wild-card bowler and can throw the bat around. Joker in the pack

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The problem, says Modi, is nobody wants to see it through right now. 8216;8216;I believe that the longer version of the game in the domestic circuit should remain, that is the essence of cricket. But if something can make the game a little more interesting what8217;s the harm?8217;8217;

What about sponsors? 8216;8216;They will come if the viewers enjoy what is being dished out. Moreover, television channels covering international matches should be forced to cover domestic games too,8217;8217; he says.

Not everyone is so bullish, however. Former BCCI president Raj Singh Dungarpur doesn8217;t agree with the concept. 8216;8216;Somebody like me who still lives on the classic version of the game will not believe in Twenty20. It is highly entertaining but there are always two sides to the coin. And Twenty 20 is the darker one,8217;8217; he says.

It is, admittedly, a challenge. The Indian mindset is traditionally conservative 8212; one Test match speedster said the hard hitting of Twenty20 could damage bowlers8217; reputations. But if the PCB can take the risk, surely the BCCI, with a larger bank account to fall back on, can follow suit?