Twenty20, anything else just isn't cricket

It's fast, it's furious, there's loud music blaring and not an empty seat in sight - welcome to the world of Twenty20 cricket. Last night's game between Worcestershire and Warwickshire at New Road attracted a sell-out crowd of around 5,000.nextpage

Traditionalists might bemoan the absence of white clothing and gentleman-like behaviour among the fans but there is no doubt in the minds of supporters, club bosses or sponsors that the shortened 20 over game is the way forward. Here are fans Aine Eagan aged 15, Natasha Morgan, 14, Francesca Morgan, nine and Monica Sellers, 12.nextpageIt is a massive phenomenon and has taken the cricket world by storm, even giving the world's best players the chance to earn footballer-type salaries for a few weeks with the recent launch of the Indian Premier League. Here are fans Richard Prentreath, Chris Gould and Tom Collins.nextpage

The winners and runners-up of this year's domestic twenty20 will go through to a world Champions League-style, where millions of pounds will again be at stake. Worcestershire's Graeme Hick hits a boundary.nextpage

The secret? For a start it only takes around three hours to play, complete with a 15 to 20-minute interval compared to the endless hours it takes to complete a four-day county cricket game. For the record Warwickshire beat Worcestershire by seven wickets. Warwickshire's Ian Salisbury congratulates Groenewald after taking the catch to dismiss Worcestershire's Vikram Solanki.nextpageLast night's game between Worcestershire and Warwickshire at New Road attracted a sell-out crowd of around 5,000, including Hartpury College students in fancy dress - a massive boost to a club which struggles to attract even 1,000 people for each day of the longer four-day version of the game.nextpage

So what is it about Twenty20 that has caught on among the fans? Alan Ramage, aged 51, and his son Matthew, 14, from Droitwich are Warwickshire supporters who attend nearly all home matches and as many away ones as possible. Mr Ramage snr said: "The problem with four-day cricket is that you have to dip in and out of it as it is difficult to get the time off work to see the whole match."nextpage

Two of the girls handing out score cards at last night's match were Helen Whitfield, aged 23, from Durham and Lucy Williams, 21, who are employed by sponsors npower. Lucy said: "I wasn't a cricket fan when I started as I always thought it looked boring but I've really started to get into the Twenty20 games as there's something happening all the time."nextpage

The Hall and Wilkins' families from Droitwich were at their first game. Sharon Wilkins, aged 37, said: "Watching test cricket is a bit like watching paint dry but this seems to be a lot more interesting."