SYDNEY: Former England captain Michael Vaughan threw his support on Tuesday behind a two-tier structure “to save” Test cricket with the ICC reportedly meeting this month to discuss the issue.
Vaughan joined former India coach Ravi Shastri in urging a shake-up which would include relegation and promotion to help ensure the survival of the red-ball game.
Both men were on commentary duties during the thrilling five-Test series between Australia and India which the hosts won 3-1 in front of huge crowds.
“It has been a series that has only served to strengthen my views on where the game is headed and what administrators should be looking at,” Vaughan said in a column for The Telegraph in London and The Sydney Morning Herald.
“I believe it is a four-day product with a set number of overs each day enforced, three matches minimum per series and two divisions of six, including promotion and relegation.”
Shastri said the Australia-India series proved Test cricket continued to hold its own in the face of ever-increasing T20 franchise cricket.
But, like Vaughan, it only reinforced his view that to survive, the biggest teams needed to be playing each other more often.
The Herald reported Tuesday that Australia, England, India and the International Cricket Council’s new chairman Jay Shah would meet this month to discuss a two-tier structure.
Any move to two divisions would kick in after the end of the current Future Tours Programme in 2027, it added, citing sources with knowledge of the talks.
“I was delighted to read in this masthead the ICC are considering a two-tier structure from 2027 which could see the Ashes staged twice every three years,” said Vaughan.
“I have been saying for a long time this is the way to keep Test cricket relevant by ensuring the best play the best as often as possible, and we get fewer mis-matches.
“There is much to iron out before any major changes are made for 2027, but there is time.”
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The ICC has been contemplating a two-tier system for years but the plans have never got off the ground.
A proposal for a de facto premier league featuring the top seven sides was on the agenda of the world governing body in 2016.
It was scrapped after the powerful Indian board led a backlash.
While India stand to gain from playing more matches against teams such as England and Australia, the BCCI said at the time the cost to smaller cricketing nations was too great.
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