A fore-runner of limited-overs cricket
In the Guardian, Mike Selvey traces the history of the Gillette Cup
01-May-2013
In the Guardian, Mike Selvey traces the history of the Gillette Cup, the first limited-overs competition introduced in England and the inspiration behind many of the shorter-format tournaments played today
This was the first sponsored event of its kind, and the story goes that the executives from Gillette charged with talking through the deal arrived at Lord's with a bottom-line figure in mind with which to start their negotiation and were astounded to discover they could pretty much pay for it out of petty cash. If cricket undersold itself, though, in an understandably introverted way, the competition, unlike its Midlands predecessor, was to prove a triumph. Crowds flocked to the matches and the Lord's final became an established full-house finale to the season.