1. It is the perfect antidote to Test cricket. So let there be Tests for the connoisseurs and T20 for the crowds. And nothing in between. That’s precisely what Michael Atherton, the former England skipper, has argued in a column. “The appetite for Twenty20 is insatiable… eventually Twenty20 cricket could well become the dominant form of the game. I’d certainly lay a large wager that eventually 50-over cricket will be rendered extinct.”

2. T20 is like the highlights package of an ODI. As Wasim Akram, probably the best bowler ever in ODIs, says: “People don’t have the time to watch cricket for a full day... Twenty20 is an ideal format for them.”

3. It is the ultimate dream come true for the gully cricketer. And there are more gully cricketers in Gariahat than there are professional cricketers on the globe. So, power to the people!

4. As a three-hour ‘show’, it’s the most potent threat to Bollywood blockbusters. All the fun formula of a paisa vasool show — non-stop action, nail-biting tension, last-minute emotion, high drama. There’s no lunch/dinner break, just a 10-minute interval, unlike the 45-minute Harsha Bhogle/Charu Sharma endurance test in ODIs.

5. T20 says it with sixes. Mike Boucher, the South African keeper-batsman, sums it up in his introductory speech before going out to bat: “My favourite shot is the one that clears the boundary.”

6. But it’s still not just about the sixes. Chris Gayle hit 10 in one innings and yet the Windies are gone with the wind before the next stage. And Daniel Vettori, the bhadralok bespectacled left-arm spinner, is Man of the Match for the Kiwis against India.

7. And it’s not just bat and ball. It’s also about beat and babe. The sight of buxom blondes in red sports bras moving and shaking to music at the boundary ropes may not be the traditionalist’s idea of the gentleman’s game, but as Ravi Shastri puts it: “I love it… It adds to the spirit of the Twenty20 by ensuring that there’s not one dull moment in three hours.” The rhythm’s gonna get you.

8. It bends the rules. Remember the hand-cricket games we used to play between classes? Well, the T20 no-ball rule is a carry forward of that. A Free Hit sets the batsman free of the fear of losing his wicket (unless he is stupid enough to get run out, of course).

9. Not fearing being bowled out in 20 overs means that batsmen can go out and just do it.

10. Penalty shootout, bowlout style. Cricket does a soccer — teams huddling together while one braveheart strides out to decide their fortunes (with a turn of the arm). Totaaal tamasha. And it gives Dhoni the chance to be the first Indian captain to beat Pakistan 3-0!

11. Also in true soccer style, the team members not in the middle do not disappear into dressing rooms to doze off; they stay put in fibreglass dugouts on the sidelines — always in the (paying) public eye.

12. It gives ball speed, but off the bat. Who cares about the bowling speed of Sourav Ganguly? Five boys from Behala. Who cares about the speed off the bat of Yuvraj Singh? We all. This little statistical gem, flashed after every big hit, is fascinating.

13. It measures the maximum. How many times have you wondered who hits the biggest sixes of them all? Well, now you know. Albie Morkel’s gargantuan six in Cape Town at 106 metres was the biggest biggie of the tourney till Monday. Thoda maaro, thoda maapo.

14. It allows the minnows to be maharajas. With 40 overs to play, it’s that much easier for Zimbabwe to beat Australia. Forget “on their day”, now “in their hour” they can beat anyone.

15. Game for the game? T20 on TV is so much like the one on your computer monitor. From the venue and pitch details to the field placements and length of the boundaries, the look and feel of cricket coverage is very much like the best cricket computer games.

16. It’s innovative (from the slow bouncer to the reverse pull) and athletic (from the slide to the dive). It might even force Team India to field better and run faster between the wickets.

17. It’s zip, zap, zoom. A World Cup with 16 teams can be finished in 13 days. Back to Atherton: “... it’s an event to be enjoyed rather than a marathon to be endured.”

18. It’s value for money. Two matches for the price of one. Buy one, get one free, eh?

19. Stars are born every session.

20. It’s as close to sex that cricket can get. Wham, bam, thank you Sir! And you thought it wasn’t a game for the ladies!