Islamabad, Oct 22: ICC Changes to Revitalize Cricket: A Multi-Million Dollar Boost to Save Test Format
According to reports, the International Cricket Council (ICC) is considering major reforms to revive Test and One Day International (ODI) cricket in an effort to grow the fan base and boost fan interaction.
The ICC is concerned about the future of the game’s longer formats and is considering suggestions to address the problem as T20 cricket becomes the talk of the town.
The requirement that all Test matches be played under floodlights, which would usher in pink-ball cricket, is one of the more extreme ideas being considered. Because of their unpredictability, the day/night tests have gained popularity among the fan bases.
The recently revealed Ashes schedule, which includes a day/night test, may be a hint to the shift.
According to the ICC committee, pink-ball Test matches have increased stadium attendance. While three pink-ball Test matches in India sold more tickets than usual, we recently witnessed extremely low turnouts in Pakistan. “More pink-ball matches should be scheduled by test-playing nations,” an ICC source said.
The ICC is also thinking about altering the World Test Championship’s organizational structure.
At the moment, nations like Pakistan, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh are only offered two or three matches at most, while the big three of Australia, England, and India have a more extensive schedule with three to five test series.
Australia and India will each play 19 of England’s 22 games during the current WTC Cycle.
With this change, the championship would be more competitive, and the points would be distributed more fairly.
A change that would restrict the usage of the new ball to the first 25 overs in ODI cricket is being considered by officials. This would ensure that the ball is older in the later phases of the match, which might help bring back reverse swing and increase the effectiveness of spin bowling.
According to reports, the ICC has already asked all captains for their opinions on the rule revisions, with any changes expected to be implemented throughout the upcoming cricket seasons.
