The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Friday announced that it has renamed the ICC World T20 as the ICC T20 World Cup.
This means next editions of the events in 2020 in Australia will be known as the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2020 and the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020.
The renaming decision is aligned to the Global Cricket Strategy which will be launched in early 2019, in which the shortest format will not only be used as the vehicle to globalize the game, but to also enhance its profile and status and ensure its status is at par with the pinnacle events of the other two formats.
The ICC had already approved that all T20s between its members will be granted T20I status. It then introduced a regional qualification process that provides a pathway to all its 104 members with an opportunity to play and win the World Cup.
The renaming of the event is also aimed at cementing the importance this event holds in the international cricket calendar and ensuring parity across all three formats of the game.
The decision to rename the event was backed by international captains, while South Africa’s Faf du Plessis hinted that the event in the last quarter of 2020 in Australia will be his final ICC event.
“The 50-over World Cup is the pinnacle event that all players strive towards, but I think the T20 World Cup will be the perfect platform for players to put up their hands for the 50-over format,” he said.
“Every player dreams of playing in a World Cup in their career and this will give them that extra opportunity.”
India men’s team captain Virat Kohli has also welcomed the change of name.
“The pinnacle event for T20 cricket is right now the World Cup. India won the first edition of the World T20 in 2007 and it would be a great moment to hold the T20 World Cup trophy aloft in Australia,” he said.
