The MTN40 a failing format

Having followed the MTN40 from the first game at The Wanderers, where I was amongst twelve other spectators, to the sold out semi-final between the Warriors and Cape Cobras, I can’t help feeling that this format has failed.

I’m generally a positive guy, but the failure of both the leading teams to reach the final made my mind up. Prior to the semi-finals The Titans had only lost one game, and the Cape Cobras had only lost two. The fourth placed team, the Dolphins had less than half the league points than the Cape Cobras had in second place. As you’ll know by now neither team made the final and I feel that we are going to watch a final between two teams that performed poorly throughout the competition.

Why did the MTN40 not follow a similar format as the Standard Bank Pro20 with a two leg semi-final or a format where the top two league teams compete in a three way final (this came to my attention while watching the second semi-final, when Kepler Wessels brought this idea up in commentary). The MTN40 only has six teams, as does the Standard Bank Pro20, so the teams play a full league just to eliminate two teams. Seems a bit daft to me.

Add to that, spectacular lack of interest. No one is even talking about the MTN40 on Twitter – bar a few die hards  and the guys getting paid. Even CricInfo gave up covering the competition halfway through. That really says something. There were early games where there were literally more security than spectators at the grounds, I know this because I was there at a few of them.

The poor structure and marketing is exacerbated by the complex nature of the powerplays, it just hasn’t worked. The bowlers are getting pasted all over the parks of South Africa, which is not helping develop South African bowlers. Seems the MTN40 looked at the Pro20 and decided to simply double the overs and powerplays, remove all the excitement they could from within the stadiums and hope for the best.

People are talking about the death of test cricket, forget that, I fear the death of domestic limited overs cricket in South Africa…. it’s time for a sponsor who is willing to innovate –  like Standard Bank has with the Pro20 –  to take over this format, for Cricket South Africa to step up to the plate and for the South African public to show some interest if we’re to compete to be number 1 in the world for years to come.