London, July 21: An eight-member working group, headed by ICC’s new chief executive officer Sanjog Gupta, has been formed by the game’s global governing body to explore the possibility of restructuring Test cricket into a two-tier system.
The committee was set up during ICC’s annual general meeting in Singapore under the all-Indian leadership of the chair, Jay Shah and Gupta, who was appointed as CEO earlier this month.
Other members of the panel include England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chief executive Richard Gould and the Cricket Australia (CA) chief executive Todd Greenberg, according to a report in ‘The Guardian’.
“Any changes would be introduced for the next cycle of the World Test Championship, due to run from 2027 to 2029, and involve an expansion from the current nine-team format to two divisions of six,” the report read.
The working party has been asked to submit its recommendations to the board by the end of the year.
The presence of Gould and Greenberg indicate that there is strong possibility of the new two-tier system being introduced as CA and ECB have been major advocates of it.
Currently, nine teams compete in the World Test Championship, but if the proposed two-tier system is implemented, the structure would shift to two divisions of six teams each, featuring a promotion and relegation mechanism.
CA and ECB discussed the two-tier concept last year. CA has been a key proponent, pushing for a model where Australia, England, and India face each other twice every three years, an increase from the current format of two series every four years.
Champions League T20 reboot on the cards
More than 10 years after its last edition, the Champions League T20 (CLT20), a club-based international T20 competition, could make a comeback next year, with the ICC actively exploring its revival.
Discussions around re-launching the competition have been ongoing, with cricket boards from India, Australia, and England leading the conversations.
The proposal to revive it has reportedly received backing from key member nations at the AGM, according to ‘Sydney Morning Herald’.
The last edition of the CLT20 was held in India in 2014 with Chennai Super Kings winning the title after defeating Kolkata Knight Riders in the final at Bengaluru.
That edition involved three teams from India, two each from Australia and South Africa, and one side each from Pakistan, West Indies, and New Zealand.
As many as six editions of the CLT20 were played between 2009-10 to 2014-15, with four of these being organised in India and two in South Africa.
The tournament was won twice each by Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians, while Australia’s New South Wales and Sydney Sixes won it one time each. (PTI)
