History
When the
Benson & Hedges Cup ended in 2002, the
England and Wales Cricket Board needed another one-day competition to fill its place. The cricketing authorities were looking to boost the game's popularity with the younger generation in response to dwindling crowds and reduced sponsorship. It was intended to deliver fast-paced, exciting cricket accessible to thousands of fans who were put off by the longer versions of the game.
The first
Twenty20 Cup was held in 2003 and was marketed with the slogan “I don’t like cricket, I love it” (itself a line from the popular cricket-themed pop song
Dreadlock Holiday by
10cc. It was won by the
Surrey Lions.
Competition Format
The
Twenty20 format, twenty
overs for each team, means a game can be completed in under three hours, making it more palatable for children and families than longer matches. Many games also feature additional activities for the spectators in order to provide more entertainment, such as paddling pools,
bouncy castles, themed areas, bowling speed-guns, and prizes for catching a 6 ball. On Finals Day, there is also a performance by a major pop act -
Atomic Kitten,
Liberty X,
Girls Aloud and
Sugababes have performed on past Finals Days, and
Mutya Buena performed on the 2007 Finals Day at
Edgbaston.
Many games are played in twilight, again to enhance family spectator appeal and to allow attendance after work and school. They also feature numerous musical 'stings' for exciting events, such as the dismissal of a batsman, or the hitting of a boundary.
Rules
Most of the standard rules of cricket are retained, but the emphasis is on fast scoring and fast moving cricket. There are limits on fielding positions, and the boundaries are shorter, to encourage aggressive batting. Batsmen get a Free Hit if the bowler bowls a "No Ball" by overstepping the popping crease. There is also a strict 1 minute 30 second time limit on the amount of time a new batsman has to reach the crease. In the event of the scores being equal at the end of the overs of knockout matches, there is a "bowl-off", similar to a penalty shoot out, except the bowlers have to bowl at unguarded stumps. The winners are the team with the most hits.
As of the 2008 season, each county team will play 10 games, playing each team in the group once home and once away
[1]. Teams receive two points for a win, none for a defeat and one for a tie or a no result if the game can't be completed. This stage takes around three weeks to complete, with teams playing several ties each week. The top two from each division along with the two best third place finishers qualify with for the quarter-finals, with the group winners and best second place team having home ties. The winners of the quarter-finals go through to "Finals Day", a bumper day of Twenty20 when the semi-finals and final of the competition take place on the same day at the same venue.
Teams
The first stage involves the eighteen counties being split into three "divisions", based on their location in
Great Britain.
Each division contains six counties and are divided up as follows:
Northern Division
- Derbyshire Phantoms
- Durham Dynamos
- Leicestershire Foxes
- Lancashire Lightning
- Nottinghamshire Outlaws
- Yorkshire Carnegie [2]
|
Southern Division
- Essex Eagles
- Hampshire Hawks
- Kent Spitfires
- Middlesex Panthers [3]
- Surrey Brown Caps [4]
- Sussex Sharks
|
Mid / West / Wales Division
- Glamorgan Dragons
- Gloucestershire Gladiators
- Northamptonshire Steelbacks
- Somerset Sabres
- Warwickshire Bears
- Worcestershire Royals
|
| Team
| Season
|
| 2003
| 2004
| 2005
| 2006
| 2007
| 2008
| 2009
|
| Derbyshire Phantoms
| Grp
| Grp
| QF
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
|
| Durham Dynamos
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| SF
| QF
|
| Essex Eagles
| Grp
| QF
| Grp
| SF
| Grp
| SF
| Grp
|
| Glamorgan Dragons
| Grp
| SF
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| QF
| Grp
|
| Gloucestershire Gladiators
| SF
| Grp
| Grp
| QF
| RU
| Grp
| Grp
|
| Hampshire Hawks
| Grp
| QF
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| QF
|
| Kent Spitfires
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| QF
| Won
| RU
| SF
|
| Lancashire Lightning
| Grp
| SF
| RU
| Grp
| SF
| QF
| QF
|
| Leicestershire Foxes
| SF
| Won
| SF
| Won
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
|
Middlesex Panthers | Grp
| Grp
| QF
| Grp
| Grp
| Won
| Grp
|
| Northamptonshire Steelbacks
| Grp
| Grp
| QF
| QF
| Grp
| QF
| SF
|
| Nottinghamshire Outlaws
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| RU
| QF
| Grp
| Grp
|
| Somerset Sabres
| Grp
| Grp
| Won
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| RU
|
Surrey Brown Caps | Won
| RU
| SF
| SF
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
|
| Sussex Sharks
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| SF
| Grp
| Won
|
| Warwickshire Bears
| RU
| QF
| QF
| Grp
| QF
| QF
| QF
|
| Worcestershire Royals
| Grp
| QF
| Grp
| Grp
| QF
| Grp
| Grp
|
Yorkshire Carnegie | Grp
| Grp
| Grp
| QF
| QF
| Grp
| Grp
|
Results
The event has been held annually towards the end of the cricket season in England since 2003.
Surrey Lions won the inaugral event against
Warwickshire Bears, in front of a sell out crowd at
Trent Bridge, in July 2003.
Leicestershire Foxes are the only team to have won the competition more than once.
| Year
| Final
|
| Held at
| Winners
| Runners-up
| Result
|
2003
| Trent Bridge, Nottingham, on 19 July 2003
| Surrey Lions
119 for 1 (10.5 overs)
| Warwickshire Bears
115 (18.1 overs)
| Surrey won by 9 wickets
|
2004
| Edgbaston, Birmingham, on 7 August 2004
| Leicestershire Foxes
169 for 3 (19.1 overs)
| Surrey Lions
168 for 6 (20 overs)
| Leicestershire won by 7 wickets
|
2005
Details
| The Oval, London, on 30 July 2005
| Somerset Sabres
118 for 3 (14.1 overs)
| Lancashire Lightning
114 for 8 (16 overs)
| Somerset won by 7 wickets
Match reduced to 16 overs per innings due to rain
|
2006
| Trent Bridge, Nottingham, on 12 August 2006
| Leicestershire Foxes
177 for 2 (20 overs)
| Nottinghamshire Outlaws
173 for 8 (20 overs)
| Leicestershire won by 4 runs
|
2007
Details
| Edgbaston, Birmingham, on 4 August 2007
| Kent Spitfires
147 for 6 (19.3 overs)
| Gloucestershire Gladiators
146 for 8 (20 overs)
| Kent won by 4 wickets
|
2008
''Details
| The Rose Bowl, Southampton, on 26 July 2008
| Middlesex Crusaders
187 for 6 (20 overs)
| Kent Spitfires
184 for 5 (20 overs)
| Middlesex won by 3 runs
|
2009
Details
| Edgbaston, Birmingham, on 15 August 2009
| Sussex Sharks
172 for 7 (20 overs)
| Somerset Sabres
109 (17.2 overs)
| Sussex won by 63 runs
|
Records
Centuries in the Twenty20 Cup
| Rank
| Player
| Team
| Runs
| Balls
| Year
| Against
| 4s
| 6s
|
| 1
| Graham Napier
| Essex Eagles
| 152*
| 58
| 2008
| Sussex Sharks
| 10
| 16
|
| 2
| Cameron White
| Somerset Sabres
| 141*
| 70
| 2006
| Worcestershire Royals
| 14
| 6
|
| 3
| Michael Lumb
| Hampshire Hawks
| 124*
| 69
| 2009
| Essex Eagles
| 14
| 4
|
| 4
| Cameron White
| Somerset Sabres
| 116*
| 53
| 2006
| Gloucestershire Gladiators
| 7
| 9
|
| 5
| Ian Thomas
| Glamorgan Dragons
| 116*
| 57
| 2004
| Somerset Sabres
| 11
| 7
|
| 6
| Graeme Hick
| Worcestershire Royals
| 116*
| 65
| 2004
| Northamptonshire Steelbacks
| 11
| 6
|
| 7
| Andrew Symonds
| Kent Spitfires
| 112
| 43
| 2004
| Middlesex Crusaders
| 18
| 3
|
| 8
| Lance Klusener
| Northamptonshire Steelbacks
| 111*
| 59
| 2007
| Worcestershire Royals
| 10
| 6
|
| 9
| Darren Maddy
| Leicestershire Foxes
| 111
| 60
| 2004
| Yorkshire Phoenix
| 8
| 6
|
| 10
| Graeme Hick
| Worcestershire Royals
| 110
| 49
| 2007
| Northamptonshire Steelbacks
| 10
| 8
|
| 11
| Jim Allenby
| Leicestershire Foxes
| 110
| 58
| 2009
| Nottinghamshire Outlaws
| 7
| 8
|
| 12
| Ian Harvey
| Yorkshire Phoenix
| 109
| 55
| 2005
| Derbyshire Phantoms
| 9
| 7
|
| 13
| Ian Harvey
| Yorkshire Phoenix
| 108*
| 59
| 2004
| Lancashire Lightning
| 16
| 2
|
| 14
| Marcus Trescothick
| Somerset Sabres
| 107
| 57
| 2008
| Worcestershire Royals
| 15
| 3
|
| 15
| Ben Smith
| Worcestershire Royals
| 105
| 45
| 2005
| Glamorgan Dragons
| 12
| 6
|
| 16
| Graeme Smith
| Somerset Sabres
| 105
| 56
| 2005
| Northamptonshire Steelbacks
| 9
| 5
|
| 17
| Luke Wright
| Sussex Sharks
| 103
| 45
| 2007
| Kent Spitfires
| 11
| 6
|
| 18
| Dawid Malan
| Middlesex Crusaders
| 103
| 54
| 2008
| Lancashire Lightning
| 10
| 6
|
| 19
| Lou Vincent
| Lancashire Lightning
| 102*
| 63
| 2008
| Derbyshire Phantoms
| 11
| 3
|
| 20
| Murray Goodwin
| Sussex Sharks
| 102*
| 65
| 2007
| Essex Eagles
| 9
| 5
|
| 21
| Stuart Law
| Lancashire Lightning
| 101
| 58
| 2005
| Yorkshire Phoenix
| 12
| 3
|
| 22
| Vikram Solanki
| Worcestershire Royals
| 100
| 48
| 2009
| Glamorgan Dragons
| 14
| 2
|
| 23
| Ian Harvey
| Gloucestershire Gladiators
| 100*
| 50
| 2003
| Warwickshire Bears
| 13
| 4
|
| 24
| Mal Loye
| Lancashire Lightning
| 100
| 55
| 2005
| Durham Dynamos
| 10
| 5
|
| 25
| Hamish Marshall
| Gloucestershire Gladiators
| 100
| 55
| 2007
| Worcestershire Royals
| 10
| 6
|
| 26
| Alastair Cook
| Essex Eagles
| 100*
| 57
| 2009
| Surrey Brown Caps
| 11
| 4
|
| 27
| Ronnie Irani
| Essex Eagles
| 100*
| 61
| 2006
| Sussex Sharks
| 13
| 2
|
| 28
| Greg Smith
| Derbyshire Phantoms
| 100*
| 62
| 2008
| Yorkshire Carnegie
| 12
| 2
|
See also
- England - English Premier League
- Pakistan - Pakistan Super League
- South Africa - Standard Bank Pro 20 Series
- Sri Lanka - Inter-Provincial Twenty20
- Australia - KFC Twenty20 Big Bash
- New Zealand - State Twenty20
- West Indies - Stanford 20/20
- India - Indian Cricket League
- India - Indian Premier League
- Zimbabwe - Metropolitan Bank Twenty20
- Kenya - National Elite League Twenty20
- Canada - Scotiabank National T20 Championship
References
- 2008 fixtures announced - Media Releases - News - ECB
- Previously known as the Yorkshire Pheonix.
- Previously known as the Middlesex Crusaders.
- Previously known as the Surrey Lions.