Young guns clinch T20 Cup

The final of the Twenty20 Cup lived up to all expectations and was a fitting end to a successful Twenty20 World Cup. How different it was in every way to that other final six months ago in the Caribbean.

India and Pakistan have had a long and hard journey since they were dramatically dumped out of that tournament with each having their own problems. Both faced criticism from all quarters and had the hard task of rebuilding their teams and restoring faith.

How different both teams have looked in this tournament, both with young fearless captains leading young and inexperienced teams with nothing to loose. There were no expectations this time on either team, but both have stood out with their attitude, skill, hunger to win and above all willingness to have fun. Both teams have not had the senior players or superstars and I think that that has the effect of lifting them to play uninhibited cricket. It is almost as if a burden has been lifted akin to parents being away from home and the kids playing in a free spirited manner without any restrictions and fear of being reprimanded.

Dhoni has shown faith in his players and asked that they perform to the best of their ability and above all have fun. It has worked on this occasion and he has proved to be an exceptional leader in his short spell. There are sterner tests ahead but it is a great start and he should take the credit for the success as he would do for failure.

The question now remains on what happens when the senior players return and indeed if they can walk back into the side after this team has performed so well. It is hard to break up a winning team so some hard and brave decisions lie ahead for the Indian selectors. One feels sorry for the big four as they never managed to get a winners medal in a major world cup tournament after so many successful years and this young team has done it at the first time of asking.

The success of Twenty20 heralds a new era for the short version of the game and I fear that the one day format may be the victim of its success. There is not enough room to play all formats of the game at a rate it is now, with the number of Twenty20 matches likely to increase. I can foresee more Twenty20 matches and less one day matches in the international calendar. The one day format was suffering beforehand and now I cannot see a way that it can compete with the new more popular and entertaining version of the game which has taken all the good bits of the one day game and taken them to another level.

India will no doubt have a grand welcome awaiting them when they land in Mumbai tomorrow, with a procession planned and no doubt more praise and riches being endowed on them from all quarters. The party boys will continue the dancing they started in South Africa and will have many more to dance along with them.