As T20s dominate world cricket, the Champions Trophy, 'The Mini World Cup', adds more relevance to ODIs

Key highlights: ODIs, the 50-over format game, are losing relevance gradually as T20s have taken center stage  Champions Trophy, the multiteam event, keeps the format alive with its knockout fixtures  The Champions Trophy 2025 edition took place after a gap of eight years, following speculations of being scrapped by the ICC. What is the players' take on ODIs? 

After a prolonged eight-year gap, the Champions Trophy returned this year. Let us call it sort of a huge moment in One Day International Cricket because there have been concerns about the ICC scrapping the tournament. But the return speaks for itself. Not to forget the last edition of 2017, a blockbuster carnival in which India and Pakistan faced one another in the final.

ODIs losing their relevance gradually 

One-day internationals haven’t been the real go-to option for cricket lovers, of course, the mood changes when it is about the ODI World Cup. For, ODIs do not have the classic old world charm like Test cricket, nor are they capable of taking the game a notch higher than what a three-hour T20 could do two decades back. There has been a decline in bilateral ODIs, and that’s when the Champions Trophy is adding to the format’s relevance, being a multinational event where the best of the cricket world compete.  ODIs used to bring financial returns once, but since the advent of T20s, they have started losing their significance. The Champions Trophy was introduced in 1998 so that it could generate revenue for the game. The inaugural edition earned more than £10 million, standing true to the expectations [1]. It was then a knockout trophy, later rebranded as the ICC Champions Trophy in 2002. 

Years ODIs T20s

  Until 2006

1,871 12 After the 2007 T20 WC 2,373 3,080 (Number of ODIs and T20s played before and after the 2007 T20 World Cup)

Until 2006, 1,871 ODIs were played in 15 years, the T20s only 12. But it was the success of the first T20 World Cup in 2007 that cornered it significantly, changing the whole landscape of the game. It soon became a hit trend in the 2010s. In 2016, the number of T20I matches (100) surpassed the ODI matches (99) for the first time [2]. 

As reported by India Today, since 2007, a total of 3,080 T20s have been played, compared to only 2,373 ODIs. The test-playing nations have competed in 2,040 ODIs and 1,320 T20s. 

Now, if we talk about the trend after the 2023 ODI World Cup, these 8 nations have played 229 T20s and only 101 ODIs. 

And before all the hype about last year’s T20 World Cup, the teams started focusing largely on the shortest format of the game, calling it a shifting focus in International Cricket. 

Reflecting upon India alone, the biggest cricketing nation of all, the team has played only 9 ODIs ever since the 2023 ODI World Cup, a period of two years. Only three in 2023, and that too without a win. It was the least in a calendar year for India since 1980. Sri Lanka played 23, Australia 13, and Pakistan 12 ODIs [3] [4].

The numbers reveal the changing dynamics and how the ODI format is being overshadowed by T20 dominance. 

In a way, the Champions Trophy is adding relevance to ODI cricket, when the sport has an incredible domination of T20s. The International Cricket Council (ICC) is trying to revive the Champions Trophy, which is said to be the most competitive ODI tournament played amongst eight teams in two groups of four each. The top two teams then head for the knockout stage, where two semi-finals are held before the grand final. Apart from the 2025 edition, it has also been announced for the next stint in 2029. Notably, the ICC allocated a prize money of $6.9 million for the Champions Trophy tournament in 2025, which is 53% more than the previous edition. That also adds to its worth [11]. 

The delay in the Champions Trophy 2025

With media speculations around about ICC scrapping the tournament, followed by further delays in the 2025 edition, the Champions Trophy did face enough hurdles before making a comeback. 

In 2016, the ICC canceled any future editions of the Champions Trophy (after 2017) as it was decided to have only one major tournament in a single format of the game [5]. In the meanwhile, the world was hit by COVID-19, and no sport was being played for a while.  However, later in 2021, as a part of the ICC's future tours and programmes, it was announced that the tournament would return in 2025 after the 2023 ODI World Cup and 2024 T20 World Cup. Pakistan qualified for the Champions Trophy hosts [6]. In 2022, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had to seek approval from their government to construct a new stadium in Islamabad for the tournament. They could propose three existing venues in Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi. Another issue was India-Pakistan's political relations. The BCCI informed ICC that India won’t travel to Pakistan, citing security reasons, and proposed a hybrid model according to media reports. This wasn’t accepted by PCB initially. But then in 2024, both the boards agreed upon the Champions Trophy arrangement, where all the matches will be played in Pakistan and a neutral venue (UAE) [7].  Further, ICC also confirmed that any tournament between 2024 and 2027 hosted by either India or Pakistan will have the same format for the matches played between the two countries [8]. 

Pakistan hosted a global tournament after 29 years, the last in 1996, followed by an attack on the Sri Lankan team in 2009 [9]. 

The players take

Well, apart from the stats, there are some other concerns as well, when players are “not seeing any future” in the format. The ICC has never spoken openly about its future, but some players are distancing themselves from it. Also stressing upon limiting the format to the World Cup alone:

Ben Stokes retired from ODIs when he was at the peak of his career in 2022. He called the format “unsustainable” in an overcrowded schedule in a statement released on social media before England vs South Africa.  England’s test coach Brendon McCullum had also backed Stokes’s decision, calling it ‘an absolute positive’ for him to do that. There is a lot of cricket and not too many are ‘all-format players’, as told to SENZ breakfast.   Moreover, South Africa canceled Australia’s ODI tour, emphasizing their T20 league back home. At that time, they were at risk of missing their direct qualification to the ICC ODI World Cup of 2023. CSA (Cricket South Africa)  had asked CA (Cricket Australia) to move the series. But it wasn’t possible, so the matches were cancelled [10].  Big players of many countries like Kane Williamson (NZ), Nicholas Pooran (WI), Trent Boult (NZ), Jason Roy (ECB), and Anrich Nortje (SA) have walked out of their national contracts, prioritizing the financial security and flexibility offered by franchises in T20s.  Former cricketers have their assessments towards the format, with Wasim Jaffer calling ODIs a “drag”, Ravi Shastri questioning the relevance of it, and Usman Khwaja claiming that the format is “dying a slow death.”  Even Sachin Tendulkar addressed the ODI struggles while speaking at the India Today Conclave 2023, stating that it has become too predictable and boring, highlighting that the use of two balls in ODIs has shifted the game in favor of the batters. Middle-overs between 15 to 40 often lack momentum and are not able to engage the audience.

Here is a player survey conducted by the World Cricketers Association (WCA, formerly FICA) in 2024, where the young players tell which is the most important format of the game for them:

Source: WCA (formerly FICA) data survey referred from ESPNcricinfo 

But some players like Virat Kohli still cherish the game, especially the Champions Trophy. How it sets you out there facing the best cricketing counterparts from all over the world, bringing your best to the field. Admitting to the fact that every match in the stint during the Champions Trophy is a knockout one, you have to win the match fixtures anyhow. He told Star Sports, “This feels like a T20 World Cup pressure in ODI format. It’s very similar because there too, you play only 3-4 matches. So, it’s very important to start well. That’s why I like it. There’s pressure from the first game, so you have to bring your A-game.”

Considering all the struggles and challenges, it would still be too early to say that the ODIs are not relevant enough. Take the stance of the 2023 World Cup alone, we saw cricket at its best, with some thrilling performances, upsets, and then comebacks too…which were engaging, at the same time, drew viewers, reminding the greatness of ODIs. The India-Australia final shattered records with 87.6 billion live viewing minutes globally [12]. According to ICC, this was a massive 46% growth from the 2011 World Cup final.  Let us not forget about the 2019 World Cup, too. And this is why ICC is still reliant on the Mini World Cup as well.

The multi-nation tournaments are always in focus and are loved by all. It is the way forward for the ODIs. And a special mention should be made about the tri-series as well, they too are integral to this. Thus, we can say that the Champions Trophy is very much relevant and is keeping ODIs alive. If ICC can think of some innovations, it can revamp the game all over again. And whether the interest is reignited or not, that remains to be seen…

 

(All facts and figures before Champions Trophy 2025)