ICC mulling to ditch Champions Trophy in favour of a 20-team T20 tournament

THE ICC has hinted at scrapping the 50-over format in favour of a 16 or 20-team World T20 tournament. 

Although the recently-concluded CT17 final between India and Pakistan drew a lot of eyeballs towards the sport, the ICC seems to be keen on capitalising the exponential rise of its shortest format. While India is set to host the ninth edition of the CT in 2021, ICC CEO Dave Richardson has divulged that the event is far from certainty.

"What we want to do is differentiate our global events from each other so that they can be standalone and create maximum interest every time the event happens. At this stage, the next Champions Trophy is still scheduled for India in 2021. Whether that gets changed, the consideration has been given to changing to two T20s in a four-year cycle which would mean swapping the Champions Trophy for a World T20.”

He further added,

"The fact is that World T20s do attract a lot of interest, they generate significant revenue for the television companies, but most importantly from our point of view they provide us with an opportunity to give more opportunities to more teams.”

Richardson expressed his hope that future World Twenty20s could become more inclusive with up to 20 nations invited to participate.

"A 16-team World T20 – even a 20-team World T20 – down the line is something that we would like to look at. With a 10-team World Cup we're hoping to increase the competitiveness of matches and the standard of the tournament as a whole. It might not be necessary to continue with two 50-over tournaments going forward."

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