Yes, for some of us, the 50-over World Cup seemed interminable, and when we finished our marathon stint in farcical circumstances, we wondered what the future held for that type of cricket.

At the time, I suggested a serious bucking up of ideas was needed to wade off the threat of a bright new kid on the block.

Well, having witnessed the World Twenty20 extravaganza in South Africa, albeit via television, I have to say the dangers for 50-over cricket are clear and present.

When Geoff Boycott, not known for his rapid scoring, declares himself a big admirer, you have to say it’s been a success.

Yes there have been mismatches and games where it hasn’t always been edge-of-the-seat stuff, but as a colleague of mine put it: “Even when this is rubbish at least it’s over quickly.”

How many times has your mind wandered in a 50-over international with the result of the game decided well before the end? I was never a huge fan of the format to start with but over the last few years, with the endless supply of series, I’ve begun to view it with contempt.

I am not alone among cricket lovers in feeling that.

By complete contrast, I can only think of a couple of Twenty20 games involving Kenya and Bangladesh where there hasn’t been something to keep me glued to the screen/radio.

OK there have been several occasions when the over-rate has been poor – certainly nowhere near as brisk as in the county version of the game – and why on earth is the final of a major sporting event taking place on a Monday afternoon?

But those are minor gripes compared with the pleasure this inaugural edition has provided.

Who will forget the delirium of the Zimbabwe team having stunned mighty Australia? What about the sensational tie and bowl-out between India and Pakistan? And then there was Pakistan’s magnificent win over the Aussies; Yuvraj Singh’s six sixes in an over against England; India’s brilliant triumph which knocked hosts South Africa out, and two gripping semi-finals, particularly Yuvraj’s superb innings against the Aussies.

And then the final. What a game!

India looked out of it, then Pakistan were dead and buried, then Misbah-ul-Haq appeared to have won it for Pakistan before his risky shot handed India glory.

Just that paragraph alone sums up why this event has had everything the 50-over World Cup was lacking.

This time we had teams challenging Australia’s dominance (although no-one will be surprised if they bounce back from their semi-final exit to become the undisputed masters of the short-game too), strong performances from superpowers India and Pakistan, and genuine entertainment with real input from vociferous crowds.

With a rugby World Cup going on and big football stories pervading the back pages and pub discussions every day, it has been heartening to note how much enthusiastic talk the World Twenty20 has generated, even among tired old hacks.

OK England have again been disappointing – but at the end of this tournament I feel much happier about the state of the sport than I did five months ago.