By Fakir Hassen, IANS
Johannesburg : India’s triumph in the inaugural Twenty20 World Championships was just what the International Cricket Council (ICC) needed, coming as it did like manna for the beleaguered body, according to the Afrikaans daily Beeld here.
“India is the heart-beat of world cricket. That is where the most money is generated in the game and also where world cricket has its greatest support,” cricket writer Christo Buchner said.
“The new fast format of the game could not have got a better introduction than was the case with India’s victory, even though Twenty20 cricket has taken on like wildfire and would have gained stature anyway.”
Buchner said the ICC would be even more pleased with the Indian victory over Pakistan because the rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL) is expected to start its first matches mid-November.
Somewhat ironically, the victory by India in an ICC tournament will give the opposition ICL an unexpected boost.
After the fiasco of the World Cup in the Caribbean, with its many accompanying controversies, ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed had every reason to smile and hail the tournament a roaring success.
“After the lashing it got in the Caribbean, the ICC needed something to restore confidence in it and that is exactly what happened over the past fortnight in South Africa,” wrote Buchner.
“It’s clear that Twenty20 cricket is here to stay and that it will change the face of world cricket completely. It will become the breadwinner for world cricket by filling its coffers. To what extent Test and one-day cricket suffers from this, remains to be seen.
“The big challenge for ICC will be to raise this baby in a way that it does not impact on the popularity of its two older brothers.”
Winning captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said although Twenty20 cricket would now have a huge following in India, he wanted it to be well-controlled so that Test and ODI cricket retained its rightful place in the game.
Shoaib Malik, who led Pakistan to the final, said his team still regarded Twenty20 as just “fun”, with its future dependent on how the ICC handles it.