Does the Natwest Blast need to be played in a block?

Last years Natwest Blast was yet again the competition that drew in the biggest crowds of the county season. Its short format brought in far more people than the county championship or 50 over competition.

Yet even with it being the most watched competition in the english domestic game, is has not reached the heights of similar competitions, such as the IPL and the Australian Big Bash.

The main reasons for this is down to the fact that the competition fails to attract the amount of world-class stars necessary to increase its status.

The competition is spread out in between county championship matches, causing players to constantly switch between formats. For example, players could find themselves playing a 4 day game from sunday to Wednesday, then having a couple of t20 games and then going back to start another 4 day game on the next sunday.

To maximise the potential of the Blast, it should take notice of the IPL and Big Bash, both of which have created a world-wide brand. Both of these competitions are played in blocks, with games coming thick and fast. Each game generates a large crowd, who enjoy such an intense level of cricket, with many of the international star players on show.

The popularity of the Big Bash can be seen from crowd figures alone as in 2014-15, BBL matches, played in far bigger grounds than most of those available in England, attracted an average of 23,539 spectators each. In 2014, the equivalent figure for the Blast was 5,772.

Last years Blast was played throughout the summer, with the group stage taking place from May-July, with the Finals days not being played until August. The long drawn out group stage takes away the ability to attract a large number of international stars for the duration of the tournament due to international commitments.

A block of games would help enhance the reputation of the competition, as it could potentially involve more star players being involved, which in turn would attract bigger crowds to the games.

A suitable way of doing this could be to play the competition over the 6 week school summer holiday period. This would allow more families to attend games, thus increase crowd levels. Another benefit would be players playing on better batting pitches, making games more exciting.

It is clear to see that for the Natwest Blast to become more popular, it should be played in a block rather than its current long drawn out structure.