Twenty20 Cricket History

20/20 Cricket Matches

Twenty20 is a form of cricket, originally introduced in the United Kingdom for professional inter-county competition by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003. It is a type of single innings cricket in which each team bats for a maximum of only 20 overs and closely resembles a form of the game which has been popular in English amateur cricket since at least the 1960s.

Twenty20 cricket History

Twenty20 cricket, which features games lasting less that three hours, was first launched in English county cricket in 2002. It has since taken off domestically in South Africa, and Australia are planning a state competition next January.
New Zealand will stage the first men's international against Australia next month, and the Aussies are to play England at the Rose Bowl in June.

West Indies great Michael Holding has branded Twenty20 cricket "rubbish" as its international future is debated. Holding refused to watch last month's Twenty20 match between Australia A and Pakistan in Adelaide, Pakistan's first Twenty20, which they lost.
"What is the point of telling youngsters to watch the game but not to copy the players' techniques?" Holding said. "There is nothing good about Twenty20 cricket. People who disagree don't know what they are talking about."

Gavaskar, heading the ICC Cricket Committee at Melbourne (Feb 04 2005), said, Twenty20 cricket would not be introduced at an international level for a few years, since after England and South Africa only Australia is planning to stage it at domestic level. "I think it won't be added to the international calendar in a hurry because only three out of 10 teams have got it," he said and added "but if it is successful, then I think other countries will be encouraged to try it out."

The first Twenty20 international

On February 17, 2005 in Auckland, Ricky Ponting's side will don replicas of the classic canary yellow outfits made famous by Dennis Lillee, Rod Marsh and Allan Border in the '80s, while the Kiwis will turn out in the beige and tan strip worn so handsomely by Richard Hadlee.
While a moustache will remain optional, the first Twenty20 international will be a good-natured throwback to the past.

"Ashes" Twenty20 international

The Rose Bowl will be the venue for the first ever Twenty20 international fixture, sponsored by NatWest, as England take on Australia at the Southampton venue on Monday June 13 2005. The choice of The Rose Bowl follows the enormously successful launch of the Twenty20 Cup in 2003 which attracted the biggest crowd in the history of Hampshire Cricket.
The prospect of international crickets old adversaries, England and Australia, pitching head to head in the first international Twenty20 match is expected to create an enormous demand for tickets when they go on sale.

Twenty20 & Kerry Packer

Cricket's most influential man Kerry Packer has started a private investigation into how he should handle the game's latest phenomenon Twenty20. At a time when Australian cricket is preparing for major change, Packer is trying to assess whether Twenty20 is a booming phenomenon, a passing fad, or somewhere inbetween. He is determined to make sure his network, Channel 9, remains at the cutting edge of the sport and presents what the public wants. Though he is rarely seen at cricket matches or functions, he remains the game's most influential figure. Packer's long-time lieutenant, cricket commentator Tony Greig, said yesterday his boss was always looking at ways of improving the game.

Packer revolutionised the sport in 1977 when he signed the game's best players to feature in his rebel World Series Cricket. This eventually led to the successful running of the current triangular one-day tournament. Having seen crowds flock to domestic Twenty20 matches this summer, Packer is mindful this new version of the game could boom internationally and domestically, as the 50-over format did for many years.