Six of the eight-strong team charged with developing the England & Wales Cricket Board's new Twenty20 tournament have "flown to Australia to see what has made the Big Bash the competition that they desperately want to replicate," according to Richard Hobson of the LONDON TIMES. With six of the eight Big Bash teams "reporting increased attendances from what was already a success" in '15-16, it is clear why ECB COO Gordon Hollins "wants to pick Australian brains." The problems facing Cricket Australia at the turn of the decade "mirror those perceived by the ECB now, as does the objective of bringing families to games." CA research around '10 revealed that cricket was "as low as the seventh-favourite sport" of under-15s. ECB figures are "even more alarming, with only two in nine children listing cricket among their top ten." ECB CEO Tom Harrison has "staked his reputation on being able to push through the competition provisionally scheduled to start" in '20. Like his counterparts at CA, he is "highlighting the link between children watching cricket and being inspired to play." CA had a "big advantage because it was adding two teams to the existing six." The ECB is "cutting back from 18 counties to eight teams, likely to be city-based at international grounds." Surrey County is "concerned," but player Jason Roy "believes from a spell with Sydney Sixers that the Big Bash can be replicated." He said, "It is pretty basic. They pull in big crowds, they have incredible players, and good pitches and boundary sizes. It is not rocket science" (LONDON TIMES, 1/12).
