The advent of Twenty20 tournaments like the Indian Premier League has unveiled a new dimension to cricket, with massive crowds being enthralled by swashbuckling batting and bowlers doing their best to outwit batsmen hell-bent on blasting them into the stands. Yet, along with their mega bucks, they have also brought with them major allegations of [...]

The Sundaytimes Sri Lanka

T20 leagues, cricketing boon or bane?

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The advent of Twenty20 tournaments like the Indian Premier League has unveiled a new dimension to cricket, with massive crowds being enthralled by swashbuckling batting and bowlers doing their best to outwit batsmen hell-bent on blasting them into the stands. Yet, along with their mega bucks, they have also brought with them major allegations of corruption and other ills that are progressively growing as these competitions gain popularity. So does the good of foreign and local Twenty20 cricket leagues outweigh the bad?
Pix by Amila Gamage

In the long-term Twenty20 Cricket is bad because it brings things like match-fixing into the game in a big way. And if you look at junior cricketers now, most of them are having their games gradually ruined by it. I see it happening already; young Indian spinners nowadays can only bowl flat, batsmen have less patience. - Ajay Chauhan (Indian cricket coach)

T20 cricket is bad for players’ technique and with the amount of it they play at these tournaments slowly their temperament is getting affected. They should be playing Test cricket to properly prepare themselves because that is proper technical cricket. T20 is all about money and flash. - Athula Wijesinghe (Corporate sector worker)

It is good and bad. Good because it exposes young talent and provides entertaining batting. The bad aspect is that cricketers from countries like Sri Lanka and the West Indies care more about big money than their national teams. - Chamikara Jayakkody (Corporate sector worker)

I think it is not good for the game because players begin to alter their style and this affects them in the longer formats. In terms of Sri Lankan cricket, foreign players get a chance to study and get used to our bowlers, while also figuring out the weaknesses of our batsmen, making them less effective in international cricket. - Channa Fernando (Club player)

I think it is an utter waste of time. Because of it cricketers now think more about money than their national sides. Sometimes it is a joke when you see players like Mahela and Sanga sitting on the bench at the IPL after they go running there. Others like Lasith Malinga have gotten big-headed because of it, and you can see it through their attitude, which sets a bad example to all the youngsters who idolize them. - Devaka de Sila (Corporate sector worker)

If you look at it from a player’s perspective it is good, but overall for the sport of cricket it is bad. Players get money and a chance to show their talent. But these leagues also destroy cricket’s discipline and values. Already match-fixing controversies are beginning to emerge and stain the game. - Diasri Lokubandara (Club player)

I think it is bad for cricket. At the international level, current players can make the adjustment to their games for the Twenty20 format but not junior cricketers. What happens is these youngsters gradually pick up a lot of bad habits watching T20 cricket; they try to improvise a lot and it disturbs their progress. I don’t think you gain anything from tournaments like the IPL. - Jayantha Seneviratne

It’s is not good for cricket. It brings corruption into the game and instills the wrong values in cricketers. Tournaments like the IPL destroy cricket and have opened the door for politics to creep into the game. - Shehan Kanishka (Club player)

I think it is good for cricket. There are a few aspects you should look at here. Cricketers now have a chance to earn more money. It also helps youngsters enhance their abilities and add to their skills. For the crowd, it is exciting and they always enjoy watching it. - Sunil de Silva (Cricket coach)




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