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Like it or loathe it, twenty20 cricket is coming to Bermuda.

National coach Gus Logie says an official competition in the controversial short version of the game may well be in place by next season.

And he insisted that the often-derided format, currently at the peak of its popularity thanks to the first ever twenty20 World Cup, did have a part to play in the future of Bermudian cricket.

"I think it's inevitable. Whether we like it or not, one has to get with the times. It seems to be the in-thing. Everyone is having a whack.

"It's a fast paced game and it's what people want to see. I don't believe it's going to replace the real thing, but it's going to be an addition to the cricket calendar.

"For us here in Bermuda, it's something that's been talked about and it's something we're looking at doing."

He said the details, the make-up of the tournament and when it would begin depended on sponsorship and would continue to be discussed at board level before a decision was made.

But he said it was likely to happen, sooner rather than later.

"It's not something that the board is immune to. I think they understand its part and parcel of cricket today.

"I think it's a great thing. It's like music - you have your slow songs and then you have your upbeat reggae songs. It has a beat and it has its followers."

He said the key-benefit of twenty20 for Bermuda could be to bring the crowds back to the game.

"It's about getting people in the turnstiles. People want to be entertained and it does provide that.

"Also if we are going to be part of the Stanford twenty20 tournament, and I understand we are one of the countries they are looking to fully professionalize, then we have to do our part to make sure that we are fully equipped to handle it."

Logie stressed that a new twenty20 tournament would have to be part of a 'holistic' improvement of the domestic game and insisted it would have to go hand-in-hand with infrastructure improvements.

"No-one wants to go and watch a twenty20 game and see both teams get bowled out for 40 because the pitch isn't good enough. We have to have good pitches with the ball coming on to the bat."

At first glance Logie's support for twenty20 is at odds with his oft expressed opinion that Bermudian batsmen lack patience at the crease and are often guilty of injudicious shot selection.

His mantra with the senior national team has always been - 'stop trying to hit the ball out of the ground, show more patience, stay at the wicket'.

Yet twenty20, as evidenced by the World Cup this week where India's Yuvraj Singh hit six sixes in an over, encourages players to go for broke from ball one. "It's being played all over the world so let's see what effect it has. I think it's a matter of versatility, it's a matter of disciplining themselves to different situations. It encourages players to be more rounded."[[In-content Ad]]

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