India legend Bishan Singh Bedi and ex-pacer Balvinder Singh Sandhu fume over world governing body's decision to scrap 50-over 2021 Champions Trophy and replace it with a World T20 event
India captain Virat Kohli and Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed hold the ICC Champions Trophy at the Kennington Oval in London ahead of the final in June last year. Pakistan eventually won the summit clash by 180 runs. Pic/Getty Images
The Champions Trophy was officially killed by the International Cricket Council (ICC) yesterday following a unanimous agreement by all parties concerned at the five-day long board meeting which concluded in Kolkata. This is not the first time that the ICC have targeted the Champions Trophy. In 2012, it was announced that the 2013 edition will be the Champions Trophy's last show. However, that didn't happen, but this time it's a certainty as the 2021 Champions Trophy which was scheduled to be held in India has now been converted into a World T20 event. As a result, for the second time after 2009, the ICC will hold two World T20s in two years — 2020 in Australia and 2021 in India.
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Balvinder Singh Sandhu
'T20, a good marketing tool'
Replacing the 50-over eight-team Champions Trophy with a T20 tournament is ICC's strategy, "to use T20 cricket as the way of growing the game by virtue of having it twice in every four years instead of once," said ICC chief executive Dave Richardson. However, some of the game's legends think otherwise.
Former India captain Bishan Singh Bedi was livid at ICC's decision. "You don't need rocket science to understand this. The writing is on the wall. Cricket administrators have gone berserk. It's a time when kids are being fed two-minute noodles. I shudder to think what basics coaches will now teach kids at the grassroots. You don't expect them to turn out to be marvels of the game. What is the ICC up to?" Bedi thundered over the phone from New Delhi. The former left-arm spinner felt the character of the game has been destroyed with the advent of T20 cricket.
Bishan Singh Bedi
"I am sad to be alive to see this rubbish flourishing. You don't destroy the character of the game. Imagine what will happen to golf if they reduce it from 18 holes to three or four holes. "This is a deliberate attempt [to destroy the character of the game]. I understand money is important, but money is the sole aim now, whilst it should actually be the means to achieve things and not be the end of it," added Bedi.
India's 1983 World Cup-winning pacer Balvinder Singh Sandhu agreed with Bedi that ICC's move is purely commercial. "They [ICC] must have realised that playing T20s is more lucrative. "Such decisions are taken for commercial reasons. What else could be the reason," Sandhu asked. The last two editions of the Champions Trophy, both held in England, received tremendous response. While India won it in 2013, the defending champions lost to Pakistan narrowly in a pulsating final in 2017.
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The ICC also granted T20 International status to all 104 members which is being looked upon as a chance to improve cricket's chances for an entry into the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
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