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After helping his Trinidad and Tobago side scoop the one million dollar jackpot at the Stanford 20-20 tournament Dwayne Bravo described the win as the best moment of his career.

It sounded bizarre coming from someone who has scored Test match hundreds for the West Indies.

But the spectacle in Antigua and the multi-million dollar player auction that launched the Indian Premier League last week showed that, like it or not, 20-20 is the future of international cricket.

There is no greater sporting spectacle than a competitive Test match. The ebb and flow of a five-day game, the rigorous examination of technique and mental fortitude are unparalleled across the breadth of the sporting spectrum.

But it is an elite form of the game and one that Bermuda can never seriously hope to be part of.

Anyone who watched teenage squad players blocking for a draw in front of a handful of old timers in the two-day competition last year could see there was little enthusiasm for the longer format on the island.

An India versus Pakistan nailbiter on a Calcutta dustbowl or an Ashes clash that goes right down to the wire will always be the most refined form of entertainment that sport can offer.

But you couldn't pay me to sit through four days of an Intercontinental Cup clash between Holland and Scotland.

Just because you like classical music, that doesn't mean you can't enjoy a pop record as well.

20-20 is the pop format of cricket. It's fast, it's exciting and it's got people talking about cricket again.

When was the last time you saw an atmosphere like the Stanford final for a cricket game? How about never?

The celebrations, which greeted Trinidad's victory in Antigua, were more comparable to a soccer final.

It may not be as exacting as the five-day game, but if, as critics suggest, it was a sport that rewarded bad technique, then Bermuda would have won.

Instead they were out in the first round with a record low total and Bravo's Trinidad - who consistently played the best cricket - were crowned champions. Class always tells in any format of the game.

As the extravaganza in the Caribbean over the last few weeks has shown, 20-20, for all its flaws, has the power to bring people back to the game. And that is what cricket in Bermuda needs more than anything.

Over the next decade the glamour, the money and the crowds will flock to 20-20. And it makes sense for us to be on board.[[In-content Ad]]

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