The T10 League has provided a platform for this format of cricket – but can it prosper?
In the last year, a new format of cricket took the world and more specifically, the UAE, by storm. The T10 League announced itself as a competitor of the more established T20 leagues in the world, especially the growing PSL – which is also played on Gulf soil. From viewership to top-notch cricketing shots, it was a success, but it is still to be seen if it provides a tough competition to the major T20 competitions.
T10 league set to expand for its second season https://t.co/Pywi48e941
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) April 26, 2018
The inhabitants of the UAE are going to be entertained by a packed cricketing schedule, starting from the Asia Cup to Afghanistan’s announced T20 league; tours of Australia and New Zealand against Pakistan; and the T10 league’s season two. The public will also be mesmerised by the Emirates board’s new league, the PSL, and the IPL. What else would one want with stars in action – but will the T10 league prove to be a winner out of all the shortest international format games.
To add more excitement, the competition has introduced two new teams from 2018 – the “Karachians” and “Northern Warriors” – and according to Shaji Ul Malik, chairman of T10 league, the tournament will kick-off in November. Meanwhile, Team Sri Lanka, will now be known as Team Rajasthani Heroes. The second edition will be a 10-day affair as Salman Iqbal, the current president of the league, says:
“T10 is getting bigger and bigger. Last year, we had four days of cricket and this year we will have 10 days of exciting cricket. Our league is recognised by the cricket world. Last year, we saw massive crowds at Sharjah Cricket Stadium and this year, I am sure the tournament will see similarly packed stadiums. It’s fast-paced cricket, and matches are over after roughly 90 minutes – which explains why people loved it in the first season. If the interest continues to grow at this rate, we might even take cricket to the Olympics.”
With this format slowly yet steadily taking over the world, and boards like PCB hoping to launch a mini-PSL soon, the question still remains, is T10 capable of being called a true format? What do you think?