The fourth edition of the Caribbean Premier League is almost upon us. And unlike previous editions, it is packed with a lot more stars and comes hot on the heels of a year which has been dominated by West Indies.
Although the tournament is nowhere near as popular as some of the other domestic T20 tournaments around the world, it is gradually growing. And this year is all set to be the best year yet. So if you are a fan of T20s, then this year's CPL is one you cannot afford to miss.
Here are 5 reasons why you should watch CPL 2016:
Next generation of WI cricketers
2016 was a year that West Indies cricket is unlikely to forget in a hurry. They are the holders of not one, not two but three world titles and all that in the space of the first few months of the year.
One of the main reasons for that was the performance of the U-19 cricketers in the World Cup earlier in the year. West Indies didn't come into the tournament as favourites but left as the U-19 World champions. And the players who made that all happen will be taking part in this year's CPL.
The likes of Alzarri Joseph, whose pace and accuracy caused some problems during the U-19 tournament, Shamar Springer’s dance moves and Shimron Hetmyer to name a few. How the next generation of West Indian cricketers go in the shortest format of the game will be interesting to watch.
Quality of players on show
While there have been many domestic T20 tournaments around the globe, nothing has been able to match the IPL for the star quality. One of the reasons for that is the international matches that are going on during most of the other tournaments and there being a conflict between club and country.
In this year's CPL, although the schedule isn't radically different in the international scene, there are a lot more star players, including the likes of AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis and Shane Watson, who are playing in the tournament for the first time.
That coupled with the regular West Indian stars like Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo and Andre Russell will mean this tournament will not be short of players that take your breath away.
Watching world champions in action
Chris Gayle, Andre Russell, Dwayne Bravo, Sunil Narine. They are just some of the World champions that will be taking part in this year's CPL. While the West Indies have always been one of the best sides in the shortest format of the game, this year's competition will see world champions take to the pitch.
The best part about any competition is the quality of the players that play in it. And if it is a competition that has a restriction on foreign players then the onus is on the domestic players, who make a large portion of the team to step up.
And when you have world champions and some of the finest batsmen, bowlers and all-rounders in the world as the local players, what more could you want?
IPL rivals turn teammates
The Indian Premier League has been one of the best things that has happened to cricketers purely in terms of the money they are now able to make. It has also been interesting because of the dynamics it has created within each side where rivals from the national teams have become teammates.
In the CPL, the dynamics have been changed upside down as the rivals from the IPL now become teammates again. And it's not just the case for the West Indians. AB de Villiers and Kieron Pollard, who play for RCB and MI in the IPL will be teaming up for the Barbados Tridents where the South African skipper will be captained by Pollard.
Chris Gayle and Andre Russell may be fierce competitors in the IPL for RCB and KKR respectively but in the CPL they will be fighting for the same cause for the Jamaica Tallawahs, which will certainly be interesting. All these duels are what makes this year's tournament even more spectacular.
Competitive cricket in USA
USA have a cricket team. Even the Cricket All-Stars, which encompassed some of the best cricketers to have ever played the game, played three exhibition matches in the USA. But there will be competitive cricket played in USA, including some of the best T20 players in the world for the first time.
The last round of CPL matches will be held in Florida. The 10,000-capacity Central Broward Stadium, Lauderhill in Florida will host the final six matches of the group stage towards the end of July. Cricket fans in the USA will get to see all six teams in action twice over four days.
The atmosphere that the games receive and how the experiment works out will be something to watch out for.
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