ICC likely to face opposition from players for seriously mulling 4-day Test matches

The International Cricket Council (ICC) is considering mandatory four-day Test matches as part of the ICC World Test Championship from 2023. A formal decision regarding the same is likely to be announced in 2020. According to Federation of International Cricketers Association (FICA) head Tony Irish, four-day Tests would provide solutions to many of cricket’s growing problems and will make the international schedule more ‘coherent’ for all teams.

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ICC to consider mandatory four-day Test matches for World Test Championship

The decision comes on the aftermath of ICC’s demand for an increase in the window for playing international cricket. With BCCI’s  Indian Premier League (IPL) covering up a substantial share of bilateral calendar space, the move to reduce a day from Test cricket is to free up as many scheduled cricketing days as possible. It is believed that four-day Tests would also allow more Test series to be contested with 3-5 matches per series. The move would benefit host boards and broadcasters a sizeable share of revenue without having to budget for Day 5 of a Test.

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However, the four-day Test matches move by ICC is likely to face opposition from players worldwide. Quite recently, Australian Test captain Tim Paine gave his opinion on the matter by taking the Ashes 2019 into account. He said many matches of the 2019’s Ashes went into the fifth day and they delivered results accordingly. Paine emphasized that traditional five-day cricket is harder mentally and physically and it is what it was designed to do. He hopes that 5-day Tests remains the only format.

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ICC World Test Championship 2019-21

Australia defeated New Zealand by 247 runs in Melbourne to go 2-0 up in the 3-match series. Meanwhile, in South Africa, the hosts defeated England by 107 runs to take a 1-0 lead in four-match Test series on Sunday. India, under Virat Kohli, continues to stay atop the ICC World Test Championship points table followed by Australia at the second spot.

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