Initial thoughts on the 2023 tournament:
Canadians are more at the centre of the action, being depended on to perform and very much holding their own. Hamza Tariq is captaining his side, Aaron Johnson, Harsh Thaker and Nick Kirton have top-scored for their respective teams. Saad bin Zafar was counted on with two crucial overs to help secure his team's first win. Many other Canadians have put in good performances - all good to see.
That said, there is a notable lack of star power from previous editions. Some of the bigger T20 names have been attracted down south. Other stars are four years older. Also, the money available to the top players seems to have declined. All this means the level of play would have dipped from 2019.
Having the games streamed on the national broadcaster should mean more opportunity for people to randomly stumble across cricket and have a look. We have to hope CBC is pleased with the viewership they are getting for cricket.
Global T20 Canada 2020
Re: Global T20 Canada 2020
There seems to be a rather liberal parachuting of players into into the tournament. Mohammad Rizwan (just off Test duty), Darren Bravo, Sikandar Raza, Andre Russell (fresh from MLC) and now Nitish Kumar have all been allocated to teams. Mercuri clearly think the presence of these names will help increase viewership. I wonder whether the stated budget of $579000 US includes the recent recruits.
Re: Global T20 Canada 2020
The 3rd edition of the GT20 went quite well. It was expanded to 7 matches per side and 25 matches in total. It seemed well-attended even though it had to contend with the overlapping Major League Cricket season and being scheduled shortly before the Caribbean Premier League. Some of the stars were over the hill, weren't available or had to leave part way through for other gigs. The tournament plowed on and even had the finals available to the widest audience possible on the national broadcaster.
This season, 3 Canadians were required in the playing 11. They were seemingly paid better on average than in previous years. Many of the locals started well, though with a few exceptions, their form dipped over the tournament. By my counting, 29 Canadian cricketers made 137 appearances over 21 matches (excluding 4 abandoned games). If next year is to plan, a minimum of 4 Canadians will feature per side. It is to be hoped that contracts for many national team members will help them improve their games and that Cricket Canada will see to it that U19 graduates are given the experience they need to eventually be part of the playing XI in the tournament.
For the future, GT20 has continue to build relationships with South Asian players like they seem to have done with Pakistan. Scouring the globe for the best remaining talent not already committed elsewhere seems to be the best they can do. It is time to find some new faces for the tournament.
This season, 3 Canadians were required in the playing 11. They were seemingly paid better on average than in previous years. Many of the locals started well, though with a few exceptions, their form dipped over the tournament. By my counting, 29 Canadian cricketers made 137 appearances over 21 matches (excluding 4 abandoned games). If next year is to plan, a minimum of 4 Canadians will feature per side. It is to be hoped that contracts for many national team members will help them improve their games and that Cricket Canada will see to it that U19 graduates are given the experience they need to eventually be part of the playing XI in the tournament.
For the future, GT20 has continue to build relationships with South Asian players like they seem to have done with Pakistan. Scouring the globe for the best remaining talent not already committed elsewhere seems to be the best they can do. It is time to find some new faces for the tournament.
Re: Global T20 Canada 2020
Any official attendance figures? The bleachers were pretty empty in
all the match highlights I've seen.
all the match highlights I've seen.