Former IPL Chairman Lalit Modi has made a striking revelation about the early days of T20 cricket, claiming that several senior Indian cricketers were reluctant to participate in the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup in 2007. According to Modi, many top players at the time viewed the shortest format of the game as unimportant and even dismissed it as a “stupid game.”
Modi said he personally urged Indian players during the team’s tour of England in 2007 to take part in the first-ever T20 World Cup. However, he claimed that several established stars were not interested in the tournament and preferred to focus on traditional formats of the game.
At that time, T20 cricket was still a relatively new concept and had not yet gained the global popularity it enjoys today. Many cricket experts and players were unsure whether the format would become a long-term success. As a result, several senior players reportedly opted out of the tournament.
India eventually sent a younger squad led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The team featured emerging talents and relatively inexperienced players who embraced the new format. Against expectations, India went on to win the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup in South Africa, defeating Pakistan in a thrilling final.
The victory proved to be a turning point in cricket history. It sparked massive interest in T20 cricket across India and laid the foundation for the launch of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008. The IPL later became one of the world’s richest and most popular sporting leagues.
Modi pointed out that legendary players such as Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, and Sourav Ganguly were not part of India’s 2007 T20 World Cup squad. He suggested that the tournament’s eventual success changed perceptions about the format and transformed the future of international cricket.
Today, T20 cricket is a major part of the global cricket calendar, attracting millions of fans and generating significant commercial value. What was once viewed with skepticism has become one of the sport’s most influential formats.
📲 Download Rashtra Pulse App:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cs.rashtrapulse
#CricketNews #T20WorldCup #RashtraPulse
