Take World Twenty20 cricket to US, says Darren Lehmann

Australian coach Darren Lehmann has urged world cricket bosses to take one of the sport's premier events to the US.

While the International Cricket Council continues to help build the right governance structure for the United States of America Cricket Association, Lehmann says the World Twenty20 would be the ideal tournament to take to a country that is already one of the sport's key broadcasting markets.

Batter up: Australian cricketers Adam Zampa, Usman Khawaja and Steve Smith visited New York this year. Photo: Getty Images

North America is a lucrative market for broadcast rights because of the number of expats from India, Pakistan and the Caribbean living there.

"The Twenty20 circuit could include a stop in the United States, a country that could also be targeted for hosting a World Twenty20, which would be the best way, at least in my opinion, of breaking the game there," Lehmann said.

Fans at a match between India and West Indies in Florida in August. Photo: AP

"Cricket can undoubtedly be a success in the US thanks to the already significant supporter base that exists there among its large Asian community. And a global event has the potential to capture the attention of those not necessarily interested in the sport already.

"Soccer took the World Cup to the USA in 1994 and the benefits of doing that can now be seen, two decades on, with the growth of Major League Soccer. while rugby union has also grasped the nettle by awarding its 2019 World Cup to Japan, a country it sees as its next big market."Cricket Australia has flagged its interest in staging either one-day internationals or Twenty20 matches in the US.

Chief James Sutherland says in terms of CA's overseas broadcast rights, the US sits behind only India and England. A quarter of the 90,000 visitors to Australia and New Zealand for last year's World Cup came from North America.

In his autobiography, Coach, Lehmann said it was time for action.

"The venues for cricket's major events through to 2023 have already been confirmed, but there is no reason why a World Twenty20 cannot be considered for the USA after that time.

"The Caribbean Premier League has dipped its toe in the water by staging matches in Florida in 2016, so why not take things on a stage or two further than that?"

CA will host the men's and women's World Twenty20 in 2020. 

In last month's ICC chief executives meeting, ICC chairman Shashank Manohar said progress was being made in finally delivering a unified and robust USACA.

"We have spent considerable time working towards the unification of the USA cricket community and making USACA compliant with the reinstatement conditions imposed by the ICC board in June 2015," he said.

"Our decision has been taken in the interest of all of cricket in the USA for the good of the game.

"We have heard the views of all stakeholders and believe this is a good governance structure capable of bringing the sport together, and we would now encourage USACA to adopt it as part of the fulfilment of its reinstatement conditions."

The ICC had suspended USACA's membership due to governance and financial concerns. USACA has worked to ease these concerns, and recently signed a $70 million licensing and expansion deal with Global Sports Ventures to introduce a franchise-based Twenty20 competition.