Brave New Pitch: The Evolution of Modern Cricket

The book looks at cricket not just as a sport but also as a business, cultural institution and global entertainment industry.

One major change discussed is the rise of Twenty20 cricket and professional leagues. T20 has introduced a shorter and more commercially attractive form of the game, while the IPL has demonstrated the power of franchise-based cricket and television-driven sports economics.

Samir Chopra is a professor of philosophy at Brooklyn College, City University of New York. He is also a writer and cricket blogger.

His writing on cricket has appeared through ESPNcricinfo, and his academic and writing interests extend beyond sports. He has also co-authored and written books on subjects including the India-Pakistan air war, free and open-source software, artificial intelligence and military history.

The book begins by examining the evolution of modern cricket and the major changes that have taken place in the sport.

The emergence of limited-overs cricket changed the traditional structure of the game. Later, the arrival of Twenty20 cricket accelerated this transformation by creating a format designed to be shorter, more accessible and more attractive to television audiences.