Just a week after claiming the T20 Champions League was a little dull, iafrica.com columnist Firdose Moonda, has changed her view.

It all changed last week Tuesday, the very day after I had written that the T20 Champions League appeared to be somewhat dull. The Eagles were chasing 120 to beat Sussex and ensure a place in the Super 8s. At 72 for one in the 12th over, they seemed well on course. Then, something happened.

Morne van Wyk got out, the next 16 balls yielded 14 runs, which wasn't too bad considering the wickets they had in hand and then Boeta Dippenaar and Rilee Rossouw (who was the top scorer) also fell. Suddenly the target appeared ever more elusive. Eleven were required off the last over. Nine off the last three balls. Ryan McLaren managed eight and the match was tied.

The match proved, once again, that low-scoring tussles are the best form of limited overs cricket. It was forced to an eliminator over, which was an intriguing battle of its own. When CJ de Villiers bowled two of Sussex's batsmen with the first two balls and won the match for the Eagles, the thrill of the occasion just about bubbled up and spilt over.

The eliminator over is cricket's equivalent of the penalty shootout and although it's nerve wracking and adrenaline injected, its not the fairest way of deciding the outcome of a match. Its advantage was that it took the Champions League from a quietly rolling stone, tumbling along while the rest of the world barely took notice, to an avalanche. Suddenly, there was life, particularly for South Africans.

Luckily, it wasn't just that match that was attention grabbing. Trinidad and Tobago's clash with the Deccan Chargers saw the men from the Caribbean emerge slender winners by just three runs. Their next encounter, against New South Wales, caused a new hero to emerge. Kieron Pollard smashed an unbeaten 54 off 18 balls to take T&T from needing 50 runs of 25 balls to winning the match with nine balls to spare. With all the misfortunes that have befallen West Indian cricket recently, it's heartwarming to see one of their teams excel at something.

Many have commented that the Champions League is more appealing to them than the IPL because it isn?t as garish and they find they can identify with the teams better. We're still seeing some of the world's best players, but rather than watching them compete in a mish-mash grouping of teams, we?re watching them in their natural habitat, so to speak. It's those teams that have dominated the tournament.

The IPL champions, the Deccan Chargers, were dumped out of the first round. The remaining two IPL teams, Bangalore and Delhi, have no chance of qualifying for the semis. By contrast, T&T are unbeaten, New South Wales have emerged as the powerhouses of T20 cricket from Down Under and our own Cape Cobras have played a brand of cricket so competitive and fearsome that they have booked a spot in the last four.

While glamorous tournaments like the CLT20 have been dominating our screens, few even know that across the border, Zimbabwe have won a one day series. It's not against a big name team and it's not a big series. They defeated Kenya 4-1 in a five match tournament.

But what emphatic victories they've been. 142 runs, 4 wickets, 86 runs and 91 runs have been the margins by which Zimbabwe have won. Their one loss was by 20 runs, in a match where the lower order collapsed. Zimbabwe put on scores of over 300 twice in the series. They bowled Kenya out for less than 250 three times - all encouraging signs for a team that is trying to claw their way back into international cricket.

Our northern neighbours have been even more ostracised by world cricket than Pakistan. After being stripped of their Test status, they are spending their time playing one day series against fellow minnows and competing in the intercontinental cup, a second tier four day championship with teams like the Netherlands, Scotland and the UAE. It's a low key championship, not many people know that Vusi Sibanda scored a double century in the first innings and a century in the second when Zimbabwe recently beat Kenya. Nobody really cares actually.

Except for the few people who remember the days when Zimbabwe looked like a team that wouldn't just languish at the bottom of the Test table for all eternity. Slowly, they look like they are attempting to address their problems. The situation from a few years ago, where the domestic tournament could not even be held because of the chaos, has vastly improved. A new, franchise system is being introduced, where more players are encouraged to represent their region rather than have a few teams from the main cities like Harare and Bulawayo be the only ones competing. The Zimbabwe Cricket Union says is hoping to find new players and take the game further into the country by doing this.

Their problems are far from solved and like most things in Zimbabwe, there are more questions than answers. Why is Heath Streak, who was so instrumental in the protests that the Zimbabwean cricket team held, now the bowling coach, for example? Will a team like Scotland be willing to play Zimbabwe in Zimbabwe or will the match be moved, as rumours have suggested, to Dubai? The question most want answered though, is will Alistair Campbell?s prediction, that in two to three years Zimbabwe will be ready to enter the Test fold, be correct? Watch this space.