“I think the biggest problem is the fallout when kids play up to the age of 14, then don’t want to play anymore. We can’t allow that to happen. But I really do get the feeling in club cricket that we’re avoiding T20. No one wants to openly admit it’s a great game. It’s like it’s the baddie. But it’s cricket. I think all the clubs in the country could be playing T20 cricket on a Sunday afternoon. I’ve said it for four or five years now. At two o’clock, every Sunday, every club in the country playing cricket with that festival feel: barbecues, bouncy castles, live bands. It’s a game I’d want to play with my lad. If I’m a young lad who’s not obsessed with the game, why would I want to spend 40 or 50 overs in the field? I wouldn’t. We’ve got to get over the snobbery of the longest format being the only format. The game’s moved on.”

– Michael Vaughan

Michael Vaughan, speaking exclusively to WCM, paints a blissful picture of the village green, shortening the play but restoring a family feel to Sunday cricket. But is this a widely desired or realistic ambition? Is T20 considered a slayer of tradition rather than a shining light for the future? And do we – or perhaps our exhausted league administrators – need to get with the times and properly embrace the shortest format? It’s a debate that really does divide opinion.

The teenage drop-off rate is caused by a wide variety of factors and it would be naïve to believe that T20 alone will earn their continued devotion. Many of those unable to commit to 50 overs on a Saturday will be unable to leave work early for a midweek T20. Alternatively, will they tolerate an hour-and-a-half round trip for a three-hour match away from home on a Sunday?

Rob Richtering gets to the crux of the matter: “People say they would come back if they could play T20, but they want it on a Saturday. That would be a mega change, going from 50 overs to 20. The majority of those playing want it to be as it is.”

A one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work at international level, so why should it at grassroots? Club cricket needs both T20 and one-day cricket to co-exist in harmony, with neither format an afterthought. It’s plausible that most players who truly love the game are prepared to create room for the longer form, irrespective of their age. You can’t disregard the loyal to attract the half-arsed who may never be truly engaged, regardless of how much make-up is applied. Yet recapturing those who flirt with the game and then do a runner is also vital. Cricket doesn’t do easy answers.

Previous debate:

https://www.wisden.com/stories/your-game/club-cricket/overseas-players-in-club-cricket-are-they-worth-the-risk-in-2018