Alongside First-Class and List A cricket, T20 is one of the three formats of domestic cricket. The domestic T20 competition in India is called the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. It is named after the batter who is credited to have scored the first ever overseas Test century.
The first edition of the tournament was held in 2006. Initially, there were 27 participating teams. This number has risen to 38 as of 2023. The 38 teams are named after Indian states, Union Territories, Regions and Pan-India Services.
The tournament follows a round-robin and knockout format. The 38 teams are divided into five groups: A, B, C, D and E. Groups A, B and C comprise of eight teams each whereas Groups D and E have seven teams. The toppers of each group directly qualify for the quarterfinals. The teams at the second position in each group qualify for pre-quarters. The best performing team placed third across all groups also becomes eligible for pre-quarters. Teams are awarded 4 points for a win and 2 points in cases of a draw.
The 2022 season saw the introduction of the impact player rule which became more familiar to the viewers during the 2023 Indian Premier League. Tamil Nadu has won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy thrice, making it the most successful team in the history of the tournament. Baroda’s Yash Devdhar has scored the maximum runs in the tournament as of 2022 (over 2200 runs). Gujarat’s Piyush Chawla is the most successful bowler, picking up 85 wickets and of 2022.
The tournament is commonly held during the months of October-November each year.
