The ECB's baby has matured

Patrick Kidd in the Times says the Twenty20 Cup has matured since its launch on June 13, 2003. He sees a trend in this year's competition:

The noticeable thing about this season's competition is that it is now a game for clever cricketers. Not flash ones - though as the first semi-final between Kent and Essex wound to its conclusion on Saturday evening the cameras showed Middlesex's batsmen practising reverse sweeps and shovel shots before their match against Durham - but those who use their brain, play the right shot for the right occasion and, above all, master the basics, are the most successful.

Kidd also takes a look at the tournament's evolution.

I had never won a tournament before so I was praying hard for victory in the Twenty20 final, says Owais Shah in his blog on the Guardian website.

Fans made the most of the Finals Day, Andrew Baker reports in the Daily Telegraph.

Off-field battles are the only threat to Twenty20 revolution, Nick Hoult points out in the Daily Telegraph.

Though the ECB and counties shelved a franchise format for the English Premier League, it might not be the end of the road yet, Hoult reports.