The feast of thrill and excitement that test cricket has provided cricket fans since inception, is still going great guns with absolutely no fears of extinction. Except for the raw fans who watch cricket only for fun, the diehard lovers of the game continue to regard test cricket as the most comprehensive, scientific, technically sound and a highly competitive form of cricket.

As the times change, innovations start appearing in every walk of life. They are perhaps necessary to provide some variety to people with different tastes, temperaments, hobbies and pastimes. Like other fields these innovations have affected cricket too but with no adverse effects. The changes were healthy as well as exciting and above all, were acceptable to the masses without whose support, sports could not possibly flourish.

What hit cricket like a storm was the introduction of limited over matches. Pioneered by Australia's Channel-9 boss Kerry Packer in the mid-seventies, the one-day matches spread like wildfire all over the world. Loved and cheered by the masses, they have almost become the life and soul of today's cricket. They draw massive crowds, attract sponsors and spin money beyond imagination. Being awfully exciting and creating a festive atmosphere, these matches have become a regular feature of almost all international series. In contrast to the slow moving tests these matches started to provide immense pleasure to the people who did not possess the time and the temperament to endure a 5-day game.

They say, `variety is the spice of life'. So the next variety to capture the interest of cricket lovers is double-wicket cricket with a format radically different from tests or one-day matches. The rules may look strange but are not complicated to understand. Unlike the normal teams of 11 players, the double-wicket teams have only 2 players each. Batting and bowling being the two vital elements of the game, the teams essentially comprise of the best available pair of all-rounders.

Two teams ( 2 players each) are pitched against each other for a limited number of overs. A player getting out does not retire but continues to bat but penalized a stipulated number of runs for each time he gets out. Is not it interesting to find that sometimes a team may end their innings with no run or minus a few runs on the board? The local cricket association provides the fielders normally. How exciting is the game, only seeing is believing!

This strange version of the game has now achieved international dimensions and Lahore will be the venue of the 4th Double Wicket Championship being held in Pakistan. While the highly energetic cricket loving pair of Syed Abbas Kazim and Nauman Badar of Interlink Worldwide is the moving force behind this venture, Pepsi Cola International is sponsoring the championship. The day and night matches will be played at the Gaddafi Stadium from 22-25 April 2001.

The championship offering a prize-money of US $ 20,000 will be played on a Round Robin league basis between two groups of 4 teams each. The group matches will be of 8 overs per innings while semi finals and finals will be of 10 and 12 overs per innings.

The organizers promise a highly exciting cricket fair to lovers of the game, presenting them with a galaxy of stars performing their best in a different role. The 5 foreign teams comprise of Craig McMillan and Chris Harris from New Zealand, Arjuna Ranatunga, Upal Chandana, Mahela Jayawardene and Russel Arnold (2 teams) from Sri Lanka, Thomas Odoyo and Steve Tikolo from Kenya with Paul Strang and Craig Wishart from Zimbabwe.

Pakistan has nominated 3 pairs to face the foreign teams. They shall comprise of Wasim Akram with Shahid Afridi, Imran Nazir with Shoaib Malik and Abdur Razzaq with Azhar Mahmood. It may be recalled that the last international double wicket championship held at Karachi was won by the Pakistani pair of Wasim Akram and Shahid Afridi.

With eight world-class pairs participating in the championship, the competition is expected to be tough as well as exciting. Pakistan's 3 pairs of available all-rounders appear competent enough for one pair to win again but in this form of cricket, fortunes fluctuate so quickly, it could be any teams' championship. Lots of fun in store for all!

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