As the cricket season is about to start in earnest in India, New Jersey witnessed a captivating week of T-20 action last week with the New York Destroyers scored an upset victory over the well-established favourites Global Challengers of Greater NY in the finals of the Radiant Info USA Twenty20 held on September 7.

In the absence of a national Twenty20 competition in USA, the Radiant Info Twenty20 has provided the participating cricketers with a platform to showcase their talent and get noticed.

ICC?s invitation to USA to participate in the ICC World Twenty20, 2010 Qualifier in Dubai early next year provides an excellent opportunity for the country and its players to make an entry into the world stage. ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat says: ?For the USA the (qualifier) tournament represents a wonderful opportunity to move towards a brighter future. A top-two finish will earn it a place in the main event, which is to be held in its own region.?

USA is not one to take such opportunities lightly. Following the lifting of the suspension of USA from ICC, USA has made giant strides in world cricket. It defeated Canada and Bermuda, both ODI countries, in last year?s ICC Americas tournament. At the Under-19 level, it has progressed to the World Cup Qualifier where its exploits have guaranteed Team USA a slot in the World Cup in New Zealand.

ICC?s Twenty20 invitation too has been received enthusiastically by American cricketers. But how does one get noticed in the T20 format when most cricket is played at the league level in the 40-over format?

That is where Radiant Info USA Twenty20 comes into the picture. Several of these aspiring cricketers, including many from Team USA such as Akeem Dodson, Kumar Nandalal and Barrington Bartley, have taken part in the Radiant Info USA Twenty20.

The tournament, which began with a ceremonial pitch by the Deputy Speaker of New Jersey Assembly, was attended by hundreds of spectators and dignitaries. The guest of honour at the finals was former Indian cricketer and member of 1983 World Cup Squad, Balwinder Singh Sandhu. Speaking on the occasion, Sandhu said that he was extremely impressed with the energy levels of the cricketers in the matches he had witnessed.

The players were virtually the who?s who of cricket in the region. New England Pioneers invited Nikolai Charles, who currently plays for Barbados. Playing for New Jersey Daredevils was Saurabh Verma from the Seattle area who was extremely successful in the recently concluded Western Conference. Vijay Beniwal, who was MVP of the Western Conference, was recruited by Washington Senators. Other notable players were Siddharth Mehta (former Baroda Under-19 cricketer), Aditya Mishra (who played Karnataka Ranji), Andrew Gonzales (Guyana) and Tony Powell (Jamaica and West Indies A).

The event attracted TV and radio coverage from USA and India, and DreamCricket.com provided live text commentary throughout the event. The tournament marked several other firsts including the use of third umpires for all matches. In a sign of things to come, all but two teams were sponsored by corporates. These included ? Global Data for the Challengers of Greater New York, Bedessee Sports for New York Destroyers, Strategic Oxygen for New England Pioneers, and Ceera Investments for Gentlemen of Philadelphia.

Speaking about the tournament?s success, Venu Myneni, CEO of Radiant Info, the tournament?s main sponsor, says: ?Radiant Info is pleased to be associated with American cricket through this benchmark tournament organised by DreamCricket.com. I am sure that many Americans, if they are presented with an opportunity to enjoy the sport in this manner, will come under the spell of the Twenty20 format.?

With the T-20 World Cup moving to the Caribbean in 2010, the Americas have every chance to mainstream their cricket in the near future.

The writer is a cricket historian