New Delhi, Jan 6 Former India head coach Ravi Shastri believes the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, in which Australia prevailed 3-1 over India, is the perfect testament to why the longest and ‘best format of the game is still alive and thriving.’
According to a report in The Sydney Morning Herald, ICC Chairman Jay Shah, Cricket Australia chair Mike Baird, England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chair Richard Thompson are set to meet later this month, with a two-tier structure for Test cricket firmly on the agenda of their discussion.
It further said if the two-tier Test structure becomes a reality, then Australia, England and India will be from having to play Test cricket against many nations, and the three nations would be able to play against each other twice every three years instead of every four years, which is currently the case.
"To break crowd records that have stood for nearly a century... is testimony to the fact that when the best teams play, the toughest and best format of the game is still alive and thriving. It was also a sound reminder to the ICC (International Cricket Council) that the best should play the best for Test cricket to survive. I will say that there’s too much clutter otherwise," Shastri wrote in a column for The Australian.
The Boxing Day Test between India and Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground set a new record for attendance figures in Tests in Australia, beating the previous record set in 1936/37 when Australia faced England in a six-day game and a record-breaking 47,566 spectators packed the stands of Sydney Cricket Ground.
The Melbourne Test set a new benchmark for the highest-ever opening day attendance in a Test match between India and Australia with 87,242 spectators at the iconic venue.
Shastri further emphasise that the game was further proof of why we need five days for a classic Test match.
"This match further emphasises why we need a two-tier system with the top 6-8 teams and then include promotion and demotion. You will not get these kinds of crowds if you don’t have two proper teams playing The theatre in the end on (day five) Monday was further proof of why we need five days for a classic Test match.
"However, if you don’t create a two-tier system, you’ll continue to have unmatched teams up against each other and then it’s very unlikely they’ll be able to take a game into the fifth day. Then there’ll always be talk of four-day Tests,” he added.
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