Try GOLD - Free
India will be the team to beat with Rohit, Virat as facilitators
Hindustan Times Amritsar
|February 19, 2025
Apologies for starting on a slightly negative note. The Champions Trophy was a bad idea.
It was a good idea when the ICC decided to discontinue it, realising that 50 overs cricket was losing its appeal with the fans, even fans of white-ball cricket. Why did they revive the Champions Trophy when there was every indication that 50 overs cricket wasn't resonating with fans anymore?
The answer to that is the 50 overs World Cup. The tournament has basically kept 50 overs cricket alive even when bilateral ODI cricket has decisively run its course.
The thing is, it's not really the 50 overs format that drew large hordes of fans to India for the World Cup in 2023 or to England in 2019; it was how those World Cups panned out – 50 overs cricket as a format would not have survived if 2019 and 2023 had turned out like 2007 or 1999.
That's one reason; the other obvious one is that it comes once in four years, so it's like you miss this one and you have to wait another four years for the next. Now, by having another 50 overs tournament in between two eagerly awaited World Cups that come once in four years, the 50 overs World Cup won't lose its attraction; just that the Champions Trophy will be ignored like it was before, and why they put a stop to it.
This story is from the February 19, 2025 edition of Hindustan Times Amritsar.
Subscribe to Magzter GOLD to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 10,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
MORE STORIES FROM Hindustan Times Amritsar
Hindustan Times Amritsar
Tan handed win after Hewson implodes on 18th
Singapore's Shannon Tan prevailed in the dramatic last stages after Alice Hewson of England faltered at the cusp of glory to win the $500,000 Hero ‘Women's Indian Open by one shot at the DLF Golf and Country Club here on Sunday. By virtue of her win, Tan, who was tied second at this tournament last year, also topped the Ladies European Tour (LET) Order of Merit.
2 mins
October 13, 2025
Hindustan Times Amritsar
Healy masterclass trumps India’s opening statement
The Aussie skipper hits 142, the highest score in this World Cup, to help holders chase India’s 330 with three wickets in hand
3 mins
October 13, 2025
Hindustan Times Amritsar
1,040 Maoists surrendered in 2025, says police data
Over 1,000 Maoists have surrendered in Chhattisgarh in 2025 so far—the highest ever in a single year, as security forces intensify efforts to eliminate Left Wing Extremism (LWE) ahead of the Centre's proposed deadline of March 31, 2026.
1 mins
October 13, 2025
Hindustan Times Amritsar
MoS to represent India at Gaza summit in Egypt
Minister of state for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh will represent India at an international peace summit being hosted by Egypt on Monday that is focused on ending the war in the Gaza Strip and bolstering efforts to bring peace and stability to West Asia.
1 mins
October 13, 2025
Hindustan Times Amritsar
In Bihar, the INDIA bloc fights a perception battle
Will it be the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) that will assume office in Patna on November 14, when the Bihar assembly election results are announced? Or will it be the Mahagathbandhan (a phalanx of the larger Opposition alliance, the INDIA bloc, in Bihar)? There's also a third player that is keenly watched — the Jan Suraaj Party, founded by pollster Prashant Kishor, who may emerge as a kingmaker.
4 mins
October 13, 2025
Hindustan Times Amritsar
A Kuldeep paradox that often stumps the Indian think tank
The left-arm wrist spinner takes 5/82 in the Delhi Test after not getting a game in the England series
3 mins
October 13, 2025
Hindustan Times Amritsar
'Hamas group will not take part in post-war governance of Gaza'
A Hamas source close to the group's negotiating committee said on Sunday that it will not participate in postwar Gaza governance, as world leaders prepare to converge on Egypt for a Gaza peace summit.
1 min
October 13, 2025
Hindustan Times Amritsar
The recipe of trumping odds: The RSS playbook
I have been watching the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) — in its 10Ist year now — for more than 50 years. An obvious curiosity arises about the secret of its success.
3 mins
October 13, 2025
Hindustan Times Amritsar
Locals flag rapidly shrinking glaciers in Bhagirathi region
It is a clear October day, high up near the glaciated regions of Bhagirathi eco-sensitive zone.
2 mins
October 13, 2025
Hindustan Times Amritsar
PM chairs key BJP leaders’ meet for Ist candidate list
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday evening chaired a meeting of the central election committee of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to finalise the candidates for the upcoming assembly elections in Bihar. The party is set to release its first list of candidates on Monday.
2 mins
October 13, 2025
Listen
Translate
Change font size