As the days pass, people’s attention span is decreasing. So to keep them engaged in this gentlemen’s game, these gentlemen had to bring in some fireworks, in the form of T20 Cricket. T20 is cricket with a constant fast change of events and it’s hard to take your eyes off! T20 helped franchising cricket in the global format, IPL and T20 World Cup being a crucial part of it. This format is not for the ones with a weak heart, and it especially attracts the young generation to showcase their talents, as this game is all about power hits and moments of impulses

ICC T20 World Cup

One of the biggest highlights of T20 is the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. The T20 World Cup is the greatest in the commercial aspects. Partners include Nissan, OPPO, BYJU’S, Emirates, Coca-Cola, Star Sports, etc. This is greatly possible due to the popularity of the World Cup and with its high amount of constant viewers around the world.

The 2021 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is the seventh ICC Men’s T20 World Cup tournament, with the matches taking place in the United Arab Emirates and Oman from 17 October to 14 November 2021.

Format

With a total of 45 matches, the T20 World Cup will be composed of two rounds. Round 1 had twelve matches played between eight teams (Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Ireland, Netherlands, Scotland, Namibia, Oman, and Papua New Guinea), with the top four teams progressing to the Super 12s. The Super 12s will consist of 30 matches between the four teams from Round 1 and the top eight ranked T20I teams. Those teams were then split into two groups of six each. This will be followed by the two semi-finals and then the final. On 17 August 2021, the ICC confirmed the final fixtures for the tournament.

Venues

UAE (United Arab Emirates): Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, each with a capacity of at least 20,000
Oman – Muscat – Oman Cricket Academy Ground.

Prize Pool

On 10 October 2021, the ICC announced the prize money for the tournament. Winners of the tournament will earn $1.6 million, Runner-up $800,000, losing semi-finalists $800,000, and including bonuses and knockout prize money, the total amounts to $5,600,000.

Overview of the Tournament

First Round

In Group A, Sri Lanka and Namibia, and from Group B, Bangladesh and Scotland advanced from the first round. In the Super 12, and the highest-ranking team was Afghanistan, while West Indies were the lowest ranking.

Special Moments from the first round include Ayaan Khan and Kashyap Prajapati both made their T20I debuts. Notably, Shakib Al Hasan became the leading wicket-taker in T20Is, by taking his 108th dismissal. Moreover, Curtis Campher was the first bowler for Ireland with a hat-trick in T20Is and the third bowler to take four wickets in four balls in T20Is. Also, Bangladesh won by 84 runs against Papua new guinea which was the biggest winning margin for Bangladesh in T20Is, in terms of runs.

Super 12

Super 12 was from 23rd October to 8th November. England and Australia both qualified for the semi-finals. Pakistan and New Zeland also qualified  from Group 2.

Moments that will be remembered include the West Indies total (55 runs) was the lowest by a Full Member team in a men’s T20 World Cup match. Shakib Al Hasan of Bangldesh became the leading wicket-taker in men’s T20 World Cup matches, with his 40th dismissal. Furthermore, Roston Chase of West Indies made his T20I debut.

Also, Wanindu Hasaranga became the first bowler for Sri Lanka to take a hat-trick in a T20 World Cup match. Jos Buttler of England scored his first century in T20Is. Wanindu Hasaranga of Sri Lanka took his 50th wicket in T20Is. Eoin Morgan of England won his 43rd match as captain to become the most successful captain in T20Is. Adam Zampa of Australia took his first five-wicket haul in T20Is. Another, Kagiso Rabada became the first bowler for South Africa to take a hat-trick in T20Is.

The match against India and Pakistan was the 200th international cricket match between the two countries. This was the first time in 13 attempts that Pakistan had beaten India in either a Cricket World Cup or T20 World Cup match. This was also the first time that India had lost by 10 wickets in T20Is.

Mujeeb Ur Rahman of Afghanistan took his first five-wicket haul in T20Is. In terms of runs, the match against Scotland was Afghanistan’s biggest winning margin in T20Is. Tim Southee of New Zealand took his 100th wicket in T20Is, against Pakistan.

In Afghanistan vs Pakistan, Rashid Khan of Afghanistan became the fastest bowler, in terms of matches, to take 100 wickets in T20Is (53). Not only that, Babar Azam of Pakistan became the fastest player, in terms of innings, to score 1,000 runs as captain in T20Is. Mohammad Shahzad became the first player for Afghanistan to score 2,000 runs in T20Is. Martin Guptill of New Zealand became the second batsman to score 3,000 runs in T20Is. In Afghanistan vs New Zealand, Rashid Khan took his 400th wicket in T20 cricket.

Last but not the least, Virat Kohli captained India for the 50th time in T20Is against Namibia.

Knockout Stage

England and Australia advanced to the knockout stage from Group 1, scoring highest in the point system. From group 2, Pakistan and New Zealand advanced.

New Zealand became the first team to reach the final after they beat England by five wickets in the semi-finals. It was the first time that New Zealand had qualified for a T20 World Cup final. They were joined in the final by Australia, who beat Pakistan by five wickets in the second semi-final. This lead us to a long-waited battle between the two finalists on November the 14th.

T20 and the World Cup Scene

T20 and the World Cup stage bring the best out of people and when they were the colors of their country and because of their commitment towards their nation, which gives a treat to all cricket lovers worldwide. T20 is all about moments of rush blood and power hits, giving a perfect pack for an adrenaline rush. T20 not only gave nostalgia by reviving the lost art of wrist spin but also kept us on the edge seats till the finals for an epic battle that is about to commence between Australia and New Zealand.

Written and Edited by: Md Samiu Hossain