Twenty20 (abbreviated T20) is a shortened format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the inter-county competition.[1] In a Twenty20 game, the two teams have a single innings each, which is restricted to a maximum of twenty overs. Together with first-class and List A cricket, Twenty20 is one of the three forms of cricket recognised by the International Cricket Council (ICC) as being played at the highest level, both internationally and domestically.

Lasith Malinga bowling to Shahid Afridi in the 2009 T20 World Cup Final at Lord's, London.

A typical Twenty20 game is completed in about three and a half hours,[2] with each innings lasting around 90 minutes and an official 10-minute break between the innings. This is much shorter than previous forms of the game, and is closer to the timespan of other popular team sports. It was introduced to create a fast-paced game that would be attractive to spectators at the ground and viewers on television.

The game has succeeded in spreading around the cricket world. On most international tours there is at least one Twenty20 match and all Test-playing nations have a domestic cup competition.

History

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Origins

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Former England batsman Andrew Strauss batting for Middlesex against Surrey

When the Benson & Hedges Cup ended in 2002, the ECB sought another one-day competition to fill with the younger generation in response to dwindling crowds and reduced sponsorship. The Board wanted to deliver fast-paced, exciting cricket accessible to fans who were put off by the longer versions of the game.[3] Stuart Robertson, the marketing manager of the ECB, proposed a 20-over-per-innings game, invented by New Zealand cricketer Martin Crowe, to county chairmen in 2001, and they voted 11–7 in favour of adopting the new format.[4]

The first official Twenty20 matches were played on 13 June 2003 between the English counties in the Twenty20 Cup.[5] The first season of Twenty20 in England was a relative success, with the Surrey Lions defeating the Warwickshire Bears by nine wickets in the final to claim the title.[6] The first Twenty20 match held at Lord's, on 15 July 2004 between Middlesex and Surrey, attracted a crowd of 27,509, the highest attendance for any county cricket game at the ground – other than a one-day final – since 1953.[7]

Worldwide spread

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Thirteen teams from different parts of the country participated in Pakistan's inaugural competition in 2004, with the Faisalabad Wolves the first winners. On 12 January 2005 Australia's first Twenty20 game was played at the WACA Ground between the Western Warriors and the Victorian Bushrangers. It drew a sell-out crowd of 20,000, which was the first one in nearly 25 years.[8]

Starting on 11 July 2006, 19 West Indies regional teams competed in what was named the Stanford 20/20 tournament. The event was financially backed by billionaire Allen Stanford, who gave at least $28 million in funding money. It was intended that the tournament would be an annual event. Guyana won the inaugural event, defeating Trinidad and Tobago by five wickets, securing $1 million in prize money.[9][10]

On 5 January 2007 the Queensland Bulls played the New South Wales Blues at The Gabba, Brisbane. An unexpected 16,000 fans turned up on the day to buy tickets, causing Gabba staff to throw open gates and grant many fans free entry. Attendance reached 27,653.[11] For the February 2008 Twenty20 match between Australia and India, 85,824 people attended the match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, involving the Twenty20 World Champions[12] against the ODI World Champions.[13]

The Stanford Super Series was held in October 2008 between the three teams. The respective winners of the English and Caribbean Twenty20 competitions, Middlesex and Trinidad and Tobago, and a Stanford Superstars team formed from West Indies domestic players. Trinidad and Tobago won the competition, securing $280,000 prize money.[14][15] On 1 November, the Stanford Superstars played England in what was expected to be the first of five fixtures in as many years with the winner claiming $20 million in each match. The Stanford Superstars won the first match,[16] but no further fixtures were held as Allen Stanford was charged with fraud in 2009.[17]

T20 leagues

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Crowd during a match of the 2015 IPL season in Hyderabad, India

Several T20 leagues started after the popularity of the 2007 ICC World Twenty20.[18] The Board of Control for Cricket in India started the Indian Premier League popularly known as IPL, which is now the largest cricket league, in 2008, which utilizes the North American sports franchise system with ten teams in major Indian cities. In September 2017, the broadcasting and digital rights for the next five years (2018–2022) of the IPL[19] were sold to Star India for US$2.55 billion,[20] making it one of the world's most lucrative sports league per match. The IPL has seen a spike in its brand valuation to US$5.3 billion after the 10th edition, according to global valuation and corporate finance advisor Duff & Phelps.[21]

The Big Bash League, Bangladesh Premier League, Pakistan Super League, Caribbean Premier League, and Afghanistan Premier League started thereafter, following similar formulae, and remained popular with the fans.[22][23] The Women's Big Bash League was started in 2015 by Cricket Australia, while the Kia Super League was started in England and Wales in 2016. The Mzansi Super League in South Africa was started in 2018.

Several T20 leagues[24] follow the general format of having a group stage followed by a Page playoff system among the top four teams where:

  • The first- and second-highest placed teams in the group stage face off, with the winner going to the final.
  • The third- and fourth-place teams face off, with the loser being eliminated.
  • The two teams who have not yet made it to the final after the above two matches have been played face off to fill the second berth in the final.

In the Big Bash League, there is an additional match to determine which of the fourth- or fifth-placed teams will qualify to be in the top four.[25]

Twenty20 Internationals

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The first Twenty20 International match was held on 5 August 2004 between the England and New Zealand women's teams, with New Zealand winning by nine runs.[26]

On 17 February 2005 Australia defeated New Zealand in the first men's international Twenty20 match, played at Eden Park in Auckland. The game was played in a light-hearted manner – both sides turned out in kit similar to that worn in the 1980s, the New Zealand team's a direct copy of that worn by the Beige Brigade. Some of the players also sported moustaches or beards and hairstyles popular in the 1980s, taking part in a competition amongst themselves for "best retro look", at the request of the Beige Brigade. Australia won the game comprehensively, and as the result became obvious towards the end of the NZ innings, the players and umpires took things less seriously: Glenn McGrath jokingly replayed the Trevor Chappell underarm incident from a 1981 ODI between the two sides, and Billy Bowden showed him a mock red card (red cards are not normally used in cricket) in response.

The first Twenty20 international in England was played between England and Australia at the Rose Bowl in Hampshire on 13 June 2005, which England won by a margin of 100 runs, a record victory which lasted until 2007.[27]

On 9 January 2006 Australia and South Africa met in the first international Twenty20 game in Australia. In a first, each player's nickname appeared on the back of his uniform, rather than his surname. The international match drew a crowd of 38,894 people at The Gabba.

On 16 February 2006 New Zealand defeated West Indies in a tie-breaking bowl-out 3–0; 126 runs were scored apiece in the game proper. The game was the last international match played by Chris Cairns.

The ICC has declared that it sees T20 as the optimal format for globalizing the game,[28] and in 2018, announced that it will give international status to all T20 cricket matches played between its member nations.[29] This resulted in a significant leap in the number of T20I matches played across the world.[30][31]

Twenty20 World Cup

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Every two years an ICC World Twenty20 tournament is to take place, except in the event of an ICC Cricket World Cup being scheduled in the same year, in which case it will be held the year before. The first tournament was in 2007 in South Africa where India defeated Pakistan in the final. Two Associate teams had played in the first tournament, selected through the 2007 ICC World Cricket League Division One, a 50-over competition. In December 2007 it was decided to hold a qualifying tournament with a 20-over format to better prepare the teams. With six participants, two would qualify for the 2009 World Twenty20 and would each receive $250,000 in prize money.[32] The second tournament was won by Pakistan, who beat Sri Lanka by eight wickets in England on 21 June 2009. The 2010 ICC World Twenty20 tournament was held in the West Indies in May 2010, where England defeated Australia by seven wickets. The 2012 ICC World Twenty20 was won by the West Indies, by defeating Sri Lanka at the finals. It was the first time in cricket history when a T20 World Cup tournament took place in an Asian country. The 2014 ICC World Twenty20 was won by Sri Lanka, by defeating India at the finals, where the tournament was held in Bangladesh. The 2016 ICC World Twenty20 was won by West Indies. In July 2020, the ICC announced that both the 2020 and 2021 editions had been postponed by one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In June 2021, the ICC expanded the Twenty20 World Cup from 16 to 20 teams starting from the 2024 edition onwards.[33]

Impact on the game

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Twenty20 matches can have some exciting displays, such as when the batsmen run out to the pitch

Twenty20 cricket is claimed to have resulted in a more athletic and explosive form of cricket. Indian fitness coach Ramji Srinivasan declared in an interview with the Indian fitness website Takath.com that Twenty20 had "raised the bar" in terms of fitness levels for all players, demanding higher levels of strength, speed, agility and reaction time from all players regardless of role in the team.[34] Matthew Hayden credited retirement from international cricket with aiding his performance in general and fitness in particular in the Indian Premier League.[35]

Several commentators have noted that the T20 format has been embraced by many Associate members of the ICC partly because it is more financially viable to play.[36][28] T20's success has also inspired the invention of even shorter formats, such as T10 cricket and 100-ball cricket,[37] and its impact on cricket has been compared to or served as inspiration for innovations in other sports, such as with the 3x3 variant of basketball or the Indian Pro Kabaddi League.[38]

Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting, on the other hand, has criticised Twenty20 as being detrimental to Test cricket and for hampering batsmen's scoring skills and concentration.[39] Former Australian captain Greg Chappell made similar complaints, fearing that young players would play too much T20 and not develop their batting skills fully, while former England player Alex Tudor feared the same for bowling skills.[40][41]

Former West Indies captains Clive Lloyd, Michael Holding and Garfield Sobers criticised Twenty20 for its role in discouraging players from representing their test cricket national side, with many West Indies players like Chris Gayle, Sunil Narine and Dwayne Bravo preferring instead to play in a Twenty20 franchise elsewhere in the world and make far more money.[42][43][44][45][46]

Under-17s and Under-19s are playing T20 games in national championships, and at the detriment of two-day games. Good state players these days are averaging 35; if you were averaging 35 when I was playing your dad would go and buy you a basketball or a footy and tell you to play that.

Ricky Ponting, [47]

Inclusion in multi-sport events

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In June 2009, speaking at the annual Cowdrey Lecture at Lord's, former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist pushed for Twenty20 to be made an Olympic sport. "It would," he said, "be difficult to see a better, quicker or cheaper way of spreading the game throughout the world."[48] This became a reality starting with the 2028 Summer Olympics. T20 cricket has also been accepted into the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games.[49]

Match format and rules

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Format

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Twenty20 match format is a form of limited overs cricket in that it involves two teams, each with a single innings. The key feature is that each team bats for a maximum of 20 overs (120 legal balls). The batting team members do not arrive from and depart to traditional dressing rooms, but come and go from a bench (typically a row of chairs) visible in the playing arena, analogous to association football's technical area or a baseball dugout.[50]

 
Middlesex playing against Surrey at Lord's, in front of a 28,000-strong crowd

General rules

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The Laws of cricket apply to Twenty20, with major exceptions:[51]

  • Each bowler may bowl a maximum of only one-fifth of the total overs per innings. For a full, uninterrupted match, this is four overs.
  • If a bowler delivers a no-ball by overstepping the crease, it costs one or two runs (depending on the competition) and their next delivery is designated a "free-hit". In this circumstance the batter can only be dismissed through a run out, hitting the ball twice or obstructing the field.
  • The following fielding restrictions apply:
    • No more than five fielders can be on the leg side at any time.
    • During the first six overs, a maximum of two fielders can be outside the 30-yard circle (this is known as the powerplay).
    • After the first six overs, a maximum of five fielders can be outside the fielding circle.
      • However, in Australia's Big Bash League the Powerplay is only the first 4 overs, with the batters choosing when the same restrictions apply for 2 overs in the second half of the innings, in a period called a Powersurge.
  • If the fielding team does not start to bowl their 20th over within 75 minutes, the batting side is credited an extra six runs for every whole over bowled after the 75-minute mark; the umpire may add more time to this if they believe the batting team is wasting time.

Tie deciders

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Currently, if the match ends with the scores tied and there must be a winner, the tie is broken with a one-over-per-side Eliminator[52] or Super Over:[53][54] Each team nominates three batsmen and one bowler to play a one-over-per-side "mini-match". The team which bats second in the match bats first in the Super Over.[55][56] In turn, each side bats one over bowled by the one nominated opposition bowler, with their innings over if they lose two wickets before the over is completed. The side with the higher score from their Super Over wins. If the Super Over also ends up in a tie, it is repeated until the tie is broken.

In the Australian domestic competition the Big Bash League, the Super Over is played slightly differently, with no two-wicket limit, and if the Super Over is also tied then a "countback" is used, with scores after the fifth ball for each team being used to determine the result. If it is still tied, then the countback goes to four balls, and so on.[57] The latest Super Over to decide a match was between the United States and Pakistan on 6 June 2024, in the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup at Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas, Texas, with the United States winning 18/1 to 13/1 in the Super Over after tying on 159.

Tied Twenty20 matches were previously decided by a bowl-out.[58]

International

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Women's and men's Twenty20 Internationals have been played since 2004 and 2005 respectively. To date, 76 nations have played the format, including all Test-playing nations.

Nation Date of men's T20I debut Date of women's T20I debut
  Australia 17 February 2005 2 September 2005
  New Zealand 17 February 2005 5 August 2004
  England 13 June 2005 5 August 2004
  South Africa 21 October 2005 10 August 2007
  West Indies 16 February 2006 27 June 2008
  Sri Lanka 15 June 2006 12 June 2009
  Pakistan 28 August 2006 25 May 2009
  Bangladesh 28 November 2006 27 August 2012
  Zimbabwe 28 November 2006 5 January 2019
  India 1 December 2006 5 August 2006
  Kenya 1 September 2007 6 April 2019
  Scotland 12 September 2007 7 July 2018
  Netherlands 2 August 2008 27 June 2008
  Ireland 2 August 2008 27 June 2008
  Canada 2 August 2008 17 May 2019
  Bermuda 3 August 2008
  Afghanistan 2 February 2010
    Nepal 16 March 2014 12 January 2019
  Hong Kong 16 March 2014 12 January 2019
  United Arab Emirates 17 March 2014 7 July 2018
  Papua New Guinea 15 July 2015 7 July 2018
  Oman 25 July 2015 17 January 2020
  Sierra Leone 19 October 2021 20 August 2018
  Lesotho 16 October 2021 20 August 2018
  South Korea 9 October 2022 3 November 2018
  China 26 July 2023 3 November 2018
  Indonesia 9 October 2022 12 January 2019
  Myanmar 26 July 2023 12 January 2019
  Bhutan 5 December 2019 13 January 2019
  Bahrain 20 January 2019 20 March 2022
  Saudi Arabia 20 January 2019 20 March 2022
  Kuwait 20 January 2019 18 February 2019
  Maldives 20 January 2019 2 December 2019
  Qatar 21 January 2019 17 January 2020
  Rwanda 18 August 2021 26 January 2019
  United States 15 March 2019 17 May 2019
  Philippines 22 March 2019 21 December 2019
  Vanuatu 22 March 2019 6 May 2019
  Spain 29 March 2019 5 May 2022
  Malta 29 March 2019 27 August 2022
  Mexico 25 April 2019 23 August 2018
  Belize 25 April 2019 13 December 2019
  Costa Rica 25 April 2019 26 April 2019
  Panama 25 April 2019
  Japan 9 October 2022 6 May 2019
  Fiji 9 September 2022 6 May 2019
  Tanzania 2 November 2021 6 May 2019
  Belgium 11 May 2019 25 September 2021
  Germany 11 May 2019 26 June 2019
  Uganda 20 May 2019 7 July 2018
  Nigeria 20 May 2019 26 January 2019
  Ghana 20 May 2019 28 March 2022
  Namibia 20 May 2019 20 August 2018
  Botswana 20 May 2019 20 August 2018
  Italy 25 May 2019 9 August 2021
  Guernsey 31 May 2019 31 May 2019
  Jersey 31 May 2019 31 May 2019
  Norway 15 June 2019 31 July 2019
  Denmark 16 June 2019 28 May 2022
  Mali 17 November 2021 18 June 2019
  Malaysia 24 June 2019 3 June 2018
  Thailand 24 June 2019 3 June 2018
  Samoa 8 July 2019 6 May 2019
  Finland 13 July 2019
  Singapore 22 July 2019 9 August 2018
  France 5 August 2021 31 July 2019
  Cayman Islands 18 August 2019
  Austria 29 August 2019 31 July 2019
  Romania 29 August 2019 27 August 2022
  Luxembourg 29 August 2019
  Turkey 29 August 2019 29 May 2023
  Czech Republic 30 August 2019
  Argentina 3 October 2019 3 October 2019
  Brazil 3 October 2019 23 August 2018
  Chile 3 October 2019 23 August 2018
  Peru 3 October 2019 3 October 2019
  Bulgaria 14 October 2019
  Serbia 14 October 2019 10 September 2022
  Greece 15 October 2019 9 September 2022
  Portugal 25 October 2019
  Gibraltar 26 October 2019
  Malawi 6 November 2019 20 August 2018
  Mozambique 6 November 2019 20 August 2018

T20 International rankings

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In November 2011, the ICC released the first Twenty20 International rankings for the men's game, based on the same system as the Test and ODI rankings. The rankings cover a two- to three-year period, with matches since the most recent 1 August weighted fully, matches in the preceding 12 months weighted two-thirds, and matches in the 12 months preceding that weighted one-third. To qualify for the rankings, teams must have played at least eight Twenty20 Internationals in the ranking period.[59][60]

The ICC Women's Rankings were launched in October 2015, which aggregated performance over all three forms of the game.[61] In October 2018, the ICC announced that the women's ranking would be split between ODIs and T20Is, and released both tables shortly thereafter.[62]

ICC Men's T20I Team Rankings
Team ICC Region Matches Points Rating
  India Asia 70 18,747 268
  Australia East Asia-Pacific 48 12,417 259
  England Europe 45 11,497 255
  West Indies Americas 56 14,060 253
  New Zealand East Asia-Pacific 51 12,578 247
  South Africa Africa 44 10,770 245
  Pakistan Asia 49 11,719 239
  Sri Lanka Asia 45 10,467 233
  Bangladesh Asia 53 11,898 224
  Afghanistan Asia 39 8,682 223
  Ireland Europe 49 9,629 197
  Zimbabwe Africa 51 9,915 194
  Scotland Europe 27 5,151 191
  Netherlands Europe 28 5,131 183
  Namibia Africa 41 7,456 183
  United Arab Emirates Asia 46 8,198 178
    Nepal Asia 46 7,852 171
  United States Americas 30 5,010 167
  Oman Asia 45 7,194 160
  Papua New Guinea East Asia-Pacific 31 4,472 144
  Canada Americas 28 3,914 140
  Uganda Africa 64 8,592 134
  Hong Kong Asia 47 6,173 131
  Kuwait Asia 41 5,087 124
  Malaysia Asia 50 6,123 122
  Bahrain Asia 36 4,299 119
  Jersey Europe 26 3,063 118
  Qatar Asia 23 2,598 113
  Spain Europe 22 2,442 111
  Italy Europe 18 1,944 108
  Bermuda Americas 11 1,185 108
  Kenya Africa 56 5,870 105
  Saudi Arabia Asia 30 3,142 105
  Tanzania Africa 47 4,301 92
  Germany Europe 32 2,860 89
  Nigeria Africa 34 2,711 80
  Guernsey Americas 23 1,759 76
  Singapore Asia 29 2,217 76
  Norway Europe 20 1,444 72
  Cayman Islands Americas 9 646 72
  Denmark Europe 25 1,711 68
  Cambodia Asia 22 1,471 67
  Portugal Europe 17 1,071 63
  Isle of Man Europe 14 857 61
  Japan Asia 36 2,174 60
  Belgium Europe 29 1,710 59
  Austria Europe 30 1,691 56
  France Europe 24 1,325 55
   Switzerland Europe 17 934 55
  Botswana Africa 24 1,298 54
  Cook Islands East Asia-Pacific 9 426 47
  Romania Europe 28 1,316 47
  Malawi Africa 30 1,369 46
  Sweden Europe 17 770 45
  Finland Europe 21 950 45
  Argentina Americas 9 407 45
  Czech Republic Europe 19 809 43
  Thailand East Asia-Pacific 28 1,133 40
  Vanuatu East Asia-Pacific 22 884 40
  Philippines East Asia-Pacific 24 894 37
  Mozambique Africa 21 751 36
  Fiji East Asia-Pacific 11 387 35
  Rwanda Africa 73 2,416 33
  Samoa East Asia-Pacific 11 357 32
  Ghana Africa 33 1,045 32
  Estonia Africa 19 597 31
  Indonesia East Asia-Pacific 45 1,394 31
  Luxembourg Europe 28 753 27
  Sierra Leone Europe 25 651 26
  Malta Africa 46 1,191 26
  Israel Europe 7 178 25
  Bahamas Americas 8 191 24
  Gibraltar Europe 31 615 20
  Hungary Europe 17 336 20
  Slovenia Europe 8 150 19
  Panama Americas 9 157 17
  Bhutan Asia 21 338 16
  Cyprus Europe 17 272 16
  Mexico Americas 9 131 15
  Croatia Europe 17 167 10
  Maldives Asia 31 234 8
  Eswatini Africa 17 118 7
  Cameroon Africa 15 99 7
  China Asia 11 53 5
  Bulgaria Europe 25 96 4
  Serbia Europe 22 70 3
  Lesotho Africa 16 3 0
  Mongolia Asia 14 0 0
  Turkey Europe 9 0 0
  South Korea East Asia-Pacific 8 0 0
  Seychelles Africa 10 0 0
  Myanmar Asia 18 0 0
  Mali Africa 11 0 0
  Greece Europe 8 0 0
  Gambia Africa 9 0 0
References: ICC T20I rankings, As of 18 November 2024
"Matches" is the number of matches played in the 12–24 months since the May before last, plus half the number in the 24 months before that.
ICC Women's T20I Rankings
Team Matches Points Rating
  Australia 33 9,671 293
  England 36 10,118 281
  India 42 10,941 261
  New Zealand 35 8,875 254
  South Africa 32 7,776 242
  West Indies 27 6,488 240
  Sri Lanka 42 9,591 228
  Pakistan 39 8,551 219
  Bangladesh 36 7,201 200
  Ireland 30 5,652 188
  Scotland 25 3,884 155
  Papua New Guinea 19 2,915 153
  Thailand 31 4,687 151
  Zimbabwe 36 5,040 140
  United Arab Emirates 50 6,324 126
  Netherlands 23 2,809 122
  Namibia 29 3,389 117
  Uganda 42 4,630 110
  Tanzania 25 2,570 103
    Nepal 28 2,781 99
  Indonesia 24 2,349 98
  Hong Kong 41 3,668 89
  Italy 22 1,838 84
  Spain 12 909 76
  Nigeria 33 2,499 76
  Rwanda 52 3,898 75
  Malaysia 34 2,548 75
  United States 14 1,036 74
  Kenya 41 2,858 70
  Cyprus 7 462 66
  Gibraltar 7 450 64
  Vanuatu 18 1,078 60
  Jersey 13 755 58
  Canada 6 326 54
  France 10 462 46
  Brazil 18 819 46
  Isle of Man 16 713 45
  Croatia 8 328 41
  Sweden 15 605 40
  Greece 18 657 37
  Denmark 13 473 36
  Guernsey 12 423 35
  Myanmar 19 664 35
  Germany 14 486 35
  Japan 26 838 32
  Bhutan 16 501 31
  Botswana 28 858 31
  China 17 513 30
  Sierra Leone 14 395 28
  Kuwait 24 651 27
  Samoa 13 304 23
  Mozambique 12 270 23
  Romania 8 126 16
  Serbia 13 200 15
  Argentina 17 232 14
  Malawi 9 112 12
  Austria 21 250 12
  Cook Islands 8 82 10
  Qatar 15 149 10
  Luxembourg 11 104 9
  Norway 13 116 9
  Bahrain 9 76 8
  Cambodia 7 15 2
  Malta 15 28 2
  Singapore 35 61 2
  Oman 7 11 2
  Mongolia 15 0 0
  Eswatini 5 0 0
  Philippines 8 0 0
  Lesotho 9 0 0
  Ghana 5 0 0
  Fiji 13 0 0
  Estonia 12 0 0
  Cameroon 12 0 0
  Bulgaria 8 0 0
  Czech Republic 7 0 0
References: ICC Women's T20I Rankings, Updated on 17 November 2024

Domestic professional T20 leagues

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The Kolkata Knight Riders taking on the Chennai Super Kings at the Eden Gardens during India's IPL 01 (2008).
 
The Perth Scorchers taking on the Hobart Hurricanes at the WACA Ground during Australia's BBL 01 (2011–12).

This is a list of the current Twenty20 domestic competitions in several of the leading cricket countries.

Country Domestic competitions Number of teams
Australia Big Bash League 8
Bangladesh Bangladesh Premier League 8
Canada Global T20 Canada 6
England T20 Blast 18
Hong Kong Hong Kong T20 Blitz 5
India Indian Premier League, Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 10, 38
Ireland Inter-Provincial Trophy 4
Netherlands Dutch Twenty20 Cup 16
Nepal Nepal Premier League 8
New Zealand Super Smash 6
Pakistan Pakistan Super League, National T20 Cup, Kashmir Premier League, Pakistan Junior League 6, 6, 8, 1
Scotland Murgitroyd Twenty20, Regional Pro Series 3
South Africa Mzansi Super League, CSA Provincial T20 Cup, SA20 6, 15, 6
Nepal Nepal Premier League 8
Sri Lanka Lanka Premier League 5
West Indies Caribbean Premier League 6
United Arab Emirates International League T20 6
United States Major League Cricket 6
Zimbabwe Stanbic Bank 20 Series 4

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "The first official T20 in 2003". 12 March 2016. Archived from the original on 2 July 2017. Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  2. ^ icc (30 January 2024). "ICC Men's T20 World Cup: Frequently Asked Questions". www.icc-cricket.com. Retrieved 6 August 2024. On average, an ICC Men's T20 World Cup match is approximately 3 hours and 20 minutes in duration.
  3. ^ Gardner, Alan (13 January 2015). "T20 timeline: Revolution to uncertainty". ESPNcricinfo. ESPN.
  4. ^ Cleaver, Dylan (3 November 2010). Brendon McCullum: Inside Twenty20. Hachette New Zealand. ISBN 978-1-86971-238-9. Archived from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  5. ^ Matches played 13 June 2003 Archived 10 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 9 June 2008
  6. ^ Twenty20 Cup, 2003, Final – Surrey v Warwickshire Archived 25 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 9 June 2008
  7. ^ Weaver, Paul (25 May 2009). "Usman Afzaal gives Surrey winning start but absent fans fuel concerns". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 17 March 2014. Retrieved 17 May 2012.
  8. ^ "Sellout at WACA for Twenty20 match". ESPNcricinfo. 12 January 2005. Archived from the original on 22 July 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2012.
  9. ^ "Guyana crowned Stanford 20/20 champions". ESPNcricinfo. 14 August 2006. Archived from the original on 8 February 2023. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  10. ^ "Dates for Stanford Twenty20 announced". The Jamaica Observer. 9 February 2006. Archived from the original on 5 December 2008.
  11. ^ "Gabba fans let in for free". Cricket20.com. Archived from the original on 8 October 2008. Retrieved 31 March 2007.
  12. ^ "India crash to nine-wicket defeat". ESPNcricinfo. 1 February 2008. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  13. ^ S Rajesh; HR Gopalakrishna. "Australia v Sri Lanka, World Cup final, Barbados". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 April 2007.
  14. ^ "Udal leads Middlesex for Stanford". ESPNcricinfo. 3 October 2008. Archived from the original on 22 July 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2012.
  15. ^ McGlashan, Andrew (27 October 2008). "Ramdin leads T&T to big-money glory". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 18 April 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2012.
  16. ^ McGlashan, Andrew (1 November 2008). "Gayle leads Superstars to millions". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 20 October 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2012.
  17. ^ "US tycoon charged over $8bn fraud". BBC News. 17 February 2009. Archived from the original on 12 July 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2012.
  18. ^ "Are T20 leagues making money?". Archived from the original on 2 November 2017. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
  19. ^ "IPL Live Score". iplt20lives.com. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
  20. ^ "IPL television and broadcast rights sold for massive £1.97bn to Star India". The Guardian. 4 September 2017. Archived from the original on 4 September 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
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