The fever is on!!

Many were skeptical about the new version of cricket , the 20-20 version. With the first world cup coming to an end , I want to put my points in favor of the newer version of the game. So here I go, why 20-20 looks better to me.

1) 20-20 means less time and the match would end soon. Hence you won't have to sit through 7 long hours to finish the match. And which would in turn mean you can do your normal chores on a match day . Which also means fewer advertisements.

2) 20-20 means full entertainment. Not a single over can be take for granted saying nothing important will happen. Just imagine what would have happened if you would have missed the over in which Pathan got Afridi out , it was in the middle of the innings.

3) 20-20 means more focus on youngsters who are physically fit and mentally tough. Yes , this is not a game for chokers. You have to hold your nerves throughout the 40 overs of the game.

4) The onus being on the team effort , individual milestones are of lesser importance. The importance of centuries and individual contribution takes a back seat. For instance, west indies lost the match inspite of a century ( the only century in this world cup ) from Chris Gayle.

5) There is no place for complacency. You just simply can't take things for granted. Every single run counts, every single dot ball counts. Take this for instance, there were matches were 13 runs were scored of the last 4 overs by Australia and matches were 36 runs were scored over a single over.

6)Dynamism is the need of the hour. You just can't simply pre-plan things. The decisions on the bowling, batting line up, fielding etc have to be taken dynamically. Harbhajan Singh was kept shielded for Shahid Afridi to come on is the best example of this.

7) 20-20 cricket is set to make its impact on the bigger version of the game as well. The way one day cricket changed the test cricket , esp. the way Australians play a test match.

8) "20-20 is a batsman's game". I would counter this argument with the logic that bowlers won all the crucial matches for India. Just that the desired level of performance from the bowlers is different now. If he bowls a 6 run over , among the last 3 he can well be the reason for the team's victory.

9) All rounders have come to spotlight. We no longer need specialist batsman or bowlers who can't even manage to do the other thing reasonably well. We need batsman who can chip in with an over or two and bowlers who can bat reasonably well .

10) And the biggest reason why 20-20 will be in spotlight , India are damn good at it. We are the champions.

Lets hope 20-20 fever catches on everyone.