T10 has great entertainment potential: Sohail Tanvir

Pakistan pacer believes shorter format consumes lesser time, attracts more audiences

Pakistan left-arm pacer Sohail Tanvir believes T10 cricket is here to stay since it appeals to the cricket loving audiences due to its shorter format as compared to the T20s.

Sohail, who was one part of the winning franchise Kerala Kings in the recently concluded T10 Cricket League in the UAE, says the business formula for the event is going to attract a lot of audiences.

“I have no doubt that T10 format has the potential to become a popular format of cricket which will be played around the globe,” Sohail told PakPassion. “We can see that cricket is constantly developing with different leagues happening around the world. Also, we must realise that cricket has become a business, and for any good business to thrive, it needs to be attractive to its customers.”

Left-arm pacer added the T10 might soon match T20s popularity. “T10 will do very well, especially in places where people have less time to watch cricket games,” he said. “In fact, I believe that there is a strong chance that T10 could take over the popularity of T20 cricket in many parts of the world.”

Tanvir believes T10 will also allow cricket to become a part of Olympics and add more people to the fan base. “Also, we must take into account the reason why the International Cricket Council has given this format their full backing and support,” he explained. “I feel this is because T10 is the best format which is suitable for a place in Olympics due to the time it takes to complete a game. If that does happen, this will expose the game to a worldwide audience which can only be good for cricket.”

‘Skill is nothing without application’

Tanvir believes adjusting to different conditions and formats is really important for bowlers, and cricketers in general.

“To succeed in any form of cricket, you need skills,” he said. “I hardly had one bad game in this tournament and for that I can only thank the Almighty for making sure that I was able to perform in that way.”

He continued: “Also, one needs to remember that you can have skills but the application of those skills in such a fast-paced game is very important. While Wahab Riaz also performed very well, I do feel that I consistently delivered for the team throughout the tournament as I was able to adapt to conditions very well.”

He added that controlling runs in T10 is more important than taking wickets. “I also knew that given the short number of overs involved, the batsmen would be coming hard at you and you had to keep your wits about you in this format. So, with a little bit of cleverness, one could say, I was able to control runs otherwise I would have also ended up with many runs scored against me like a few others.”

‘Amazing to win T10 with Kerala’

Tanvir believes being a part of the winning team of an inaugural tournament is always good.

“It was an amazing feeling and naturally when you win a tournament, and especially when it’s the first time for this format, it feels great, and of course, I am also very proud of my team, Kerala Kings, who won this tournament,” he said.