Cricket Australia's City-Based T20 Plan

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Jonesy

Jonesy

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Cricket Australia's City-Based T20 Plan

Anybody heard about this? Basically, Cricket Australia are replacing the T20 Big Bash with a new tournament that they are hoping to have an AFL/NRL type following for. The 6 State Associations will take over their respective city teams, and two more team's locations are being decided. It will have almost double the amount of games the Big Bash has, which is likely to cut the number of Shield games down from 10 to 8. The teams will have brand new logos, colours and players. I think there is going to be 120 players, they are hoping to get some internationals, but they are not sure if CA contracted players will be able to play. I also believe there is set to be a draft to determine where the players go. Cricket Australia reckon this will be bigger than Packer's World Series. Ahuh...

I heard Peter Young from CA explain this on SEN today. He basically said that this will result in some players becoming T20 specialists. He also said that preserving Test cricket is their number one goal, but I don't see how creating T20 specialists and reducing the number of Shield games is preserving Test cricket's future?

And lol at them trying to make it so cricket players are as well known as footy players. They reckon the base will be pretty big, but I don't see the fan base will be any bigger than for the current Big Bash matches.

Oh yeah, and it's coming in, in 2012.

Thoughts?
 
Re: Cricket Australia's City-Based T20 Plan

Well, well, well.

I don't know what to think about it. I don't like T20 myself, but I am trying to also be unbiased because they may very well be the future of cricket, it could go either way.

State cricket currently has no worth. Nobody bothers to go to games and it really has no meanining when it comes to watchability. Whereas, take NRL and AFL. They have huge franchises and thousands of viewers every week watch State equivalent football. Then the international matches don't seem to have as much importance, not that AFL has them, but NRL international matches have less viewers and less pashionate supporters since 'their' players are mixed in with 'other teams' players.

This may make the public actually take State cricket seriously, and not just a warm up area for International aspirants.

In saying this, though, it could also draw people away from the true cricket team, the International Test/ODI and in some ways the T20 team as well.

If this is done to the T20 comp, then it has to be done to the Shield and the ODers as well. I would hate to see such an overrated game take importance away from the ones that have been there for year and years. Which is why I am against this idea, because if it has to be done T20, then it has to be done for the FRC and SS and I am definitely against having a Brisbane Shield team and losing all the records of Queensland.

Australia doesn't have an IPL for a reason, CA should have more sense than that.

There needs to be some popularity studies done to see for certain how many people actually prefer T20 cricket. It is larger than we think, because us die-hard cricket fans only hear the fans of other die-hard cricket fans and not the general public that may watch only T20s on TV, but still, Test cricket easily over hauls it.
 
Re: Cricket Australia's City-Based T20 Plan

It was to be expected in all honesty. The truth is that all other nations are seeing the model of the IPL making mega bucks and want some of the same action. The article (via aforefforts link) does not mention ownership -> who owns these city sides and will international players be allowed to play in it?

Also what will the relationship be between the franchises and the current boards because I cannot see/ rather know of other venues that these sides can play at than the normal stadiums.

The major question I have of these commercial tournaments is that with the exception of India massive support base can the other nations really have another tournament -> I am waiting for the South African T20 FC tournament as I sense attendance will be lower this season. Think for one moment - It will be the same supporters going to these matches that are going to the KFC bigbash right?

Would logic not be that you take the current competition and pump the money into it?
 
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