Cricket finally ready to shed jinx

The best thing that the shortest form of the game can do is to make cricket more global. Though, it is played by countries representing different continents, they are still far too less than most other games followed around the world.
Though, International Cricket Council (ICC) is associated with many countries where the game is being developed, thinking of them playing the highest form of the game – Test Cricket – would be absurd.
The problem most of the nations that play the game face is the patience and the temperament required to play Test matches, and another thing that comes straight away to our mind, is the result. We all want medals, trophies or success straight away, or at least we want to be in that medal winning ‘hunt’ from the word go.
Twenty-20, seems to be the perfect format, as it requires a different set of skills, involves more money, it takes less time to play a T-20 game than the other two forms, and it is entertaining at the same time.
The traditionalists would say that this format is slowly swallowing up the other two forms, especially Test cricket. I think their worry is quite obvious and true to a certain point.
The way T-20 has grown in stature in the last few years solidifies its claim to become the most popular form of the game, if not standard.
Though, it was fist played in the county circuit in England and later followed by the other countries. India was one of the countries who started following this format as compulsion and not by choice, as all the other ones had already gone ahead. But the way it gained popularity among the masses was just amazing.
The full houses in any T-20 game – international or domestic around the world – testifies the growing fan base this version gaining.
I think in the next five years, there will be a separate window for the domestic T-20 competition that ICC has to make. It will be played in the manner soccer is played around the world. With domestic competition flourishing, a lot more players’ will be transfered between clubs of different countries.
I also see, Champions League too will take off and take a global form – it would be played at home and away basis with the final in a different country each year. For example – if Bangalore Royal Challengers and Victoria Bushrangers are the two teams among the sides playing in the competition, then once the Challengers will go to Melbourne and latter, they will host the Australian side at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore.
With that, undoubtedly, there will be less number of Tests as well as one day internationals played with T-20 touching the shores of different countries of all the continents and not just few.