England to raise idea of Twenty20 World Cup

A record crowd watched Australia's first Twenty20 international at Brisbane today © Getty Images

England are set to raise the possibility of the ICC staging a Twenty20 World Cup in the light of the Indian board's recent suggestions that the existing biannual Champions Trophy be ditched.

The Twenty20 format has proved immensely popular with the public wherever it has been introduced, and crowds for domestic matches in Australia, England, Pakistan and South Africa have been massive in comparison with the usual turnout. Last June, more than 30,000 spectators packed Lord's for a match between Middlesex and Surrey and today a record crowd of 38,000 packed The Gabba for Australia's first Twenty20 international.

While administrators in some countries have been slow to embrace the format, the old Indian board appeared to have been reluctant to consider it. It possibly feared that Twenty20 could threaten the lucrative one-day international market which provides it with a substantial income stream. For example, there are far fewer commercial opportunities for sale during a Twenty20 match than an ODI. The new board, however, might be more open minded.

The England board are thought to be concerned that India are looking to add even more ODIs to an already packed schedule, and, according to a report in last week's London-based Guardian, David Morgan, the ECB chairman, fears that the one-day concept could be oversold.

Cricket Australia, which also reaps hefty rewards from a string of one-dayers during its summer, gave the idea a lukewarm reception but denied that the idea for a Twenty20 World Cup had been raised with it. "England have certainly not raised the issue with us, and from a Cricket Australia point of view, we're staying open-minded," Peter Young, CA's communications manager, said. "Obviously Twenty20 cricket has been great for the English county game but we're not sure how that translates internationally. The international calendar is already quite full. Test cricket is enjoying a resurgence and one-day cricket is a success. We're conscious of that and don't want to upset that. We're still dipping our toes in the water with Twenty20 cricket at this stage."

But, assuming that it is not a flash in the pan - and the evidence so far is that it is not - then the weight of numbers going to watch Twenty20 matches might force the ICC's hand. The crowds for the first domestic tournament in Australia in the last week have been large, and that will, in turn attract the sponsors and the interest of television. After all, in the early 1970s one-day cricket was regarded with equal scepticism, and look where that is now.