The recently concluded Champions Trophy might have been the last ever to take place in the history of international cricket. There is a reason for that, as the competition may end forever, opening doors to the World T20 every two years.
If that is the case, Pakistan will never be able to defend their crown, and the epic India vs Pakistan final will prove to be the last match of this particular ICC event. It also means India will never be able to become the first team to win the Champions Trophy title thrice, but end up as one of the most successful teams in the competition. India have won the Champions Trophy twice.
If one looks at the Champions Trophy 2017 in England, there were some matches, which witnessed sellout crowds, especially when hosts nation England or India played. But then, there were some matches, which did not give a good look on the TV screens with a number of empty seats.
There also seems to be a lot of similarity between the Champions Trophy and the ICC World Cup, which might go against the former. ICC chief executive Dave Richardson informed that the new plan of two World T20is under 'consideration'.
"What we want to do is differentiate our global events from each other so that they can be standalone and create maximum interest every time the event happens," AFP quoted Richardson as saying.
"At this stage, the next Champions Trophy is still scheduled for India in 2021. Whether that gets changed, the consideration has been given to changing to two T20s in a four-year cycle which would mean swapping the Champions Trophy for a World T20."
The ICC always gives their best to ensure that matches are attended well by the viewers, like the World T20.
The shorter format is extremely popular with cricket lovers all around the world as it is not too time-consuming as well, and hence attended by the maximum number of fans. It generates a lot of revenue for the ICC as well. If there are two World T20's, it might comprise the 16 or 20-team competition as well.
"The fact is that World T20s do attract a lot of interest, they generate significant revenue for the television companies, but most importantly, from our point of view they provide us with an opportunity to give more opportunities to more teams. A 16-team World T20 — even a 20-team World T20 — down the line is something that we would like to look at," Richardson said.
