T-20...Cricket or Not?

A lot is being made out of this new apparition of the game cricket-Twenty-Twenty. People are still not resolved in their conflict whether this format of the game has any resemblance to the ‘gentleman’s sport’ begun in England. I have an altogether different view of the matter. I feel that it may not be cricket but it is definitely less ‘sinister’ than the ‘gentleman’s game’.

Cricket developed in England in the 18th century. It was then played by the land owning gentry of the country. ‘Gentleman’ is in fact a very cleverly disguised term to describe the ‘idle rich’. They were people who owned vast swathes of land and had to do little work to sustain themselves as the peasants tilled the land. Only that class at the top of the pyramid could logically play a game for 5 days. Even then results were not always produced, so the game became a means to satisfy the ‘leisure’ time. In fact, even working rich like the merchants were not allowed initially. Later when they did get inducted, separate pavilions were in store for the ‘gentlemen’ and ‘workers’. And soon the game became a further propaganda for England as it was introduced to some of the colonies as a means of ‘elevating’ the local rulers. Even here a discrimination was done, as the colonies at the ‘lowest’ level were not ‘fortunate’ enough to be introduced to the sport. So while Indian Rajas became active participants of cricket, African tribal chiefs or Caribbean ‘blacks’ would never be privy to it.

Now the game has changed beyond that. Commercialization has made it possible for cricket to become a sport of mass popularity in countries of the Indian sub-continent. Players are being drawn from different economic classes. Twenty-Twenty in such a scenario becomes an extremely democratic form of the game. It ends in about three hours and thus suited to people busy in their lives and working to meet their various needs.

So yes, W.G. Grace may be turning in his grave to see the world’s eyes resting on the Indian Premier League at the height of the English summer, yet we have to understand that the world has changed and cricket has to evolve accordingly. The gentlemen who developed the game were never so gentle after all.