OTD | Twenty20 Cup, considered a gimmick format, burst onto the English domestic scene in 2003

On this day, back in 2003, a phenomenon that would change the entire landscape of cricket, T20 Cricket, took centre stage. The final of the inaugural edition of the T20 Blast, earlier known as the Twenty20 Cup, was played on the 19th of July in 2003. 

A shorter format of cricket was first ideated in 1998 when the ECB saw a dip in attendance during the county matches. However, the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) shelved the idea then. The idea was reignited in 2001 with a continued dip in attendance in the County Cricket Championship. 

According to research conducted by the ECB, two-thirds of the population either hated Cricket or had no interest in it, however, half of them suggested that they could enjoy shorter matches played on weekday evenings, thus giving birth to T20 Cricket. 

ECB started marketing the Twenty20 Cup, including off-field entertainment with live bands, barbecue zones, and karaoke machines. This was done to attract families and younger people to the stadiums. 

The 18 first-class counties were split into three regional groups of six teams, and the toppers from each group and the best runner-up advanced to the Final day of the tournament. The semi-finals and the final were played on the same day in 2003. 

The final was played between Surrey and Warwickshire at the Trent Bridge in Nottingham. The latter won the toss and decided to bat first, but only managed to get 115 runs on the board. The Surrey bowlers emerged on the top, with Jimmy Ormond claiming four wickets in his spell. In the chase, Surrey’s openers scored a half-century each and the team only lost one wicket to complete the chase in under 11 overs. They were crowned the Twenty20 Cup champions in 2003. 

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