The WCC met in Cape Town last week on the sidelines of SA20.
In a statement, the Committee rued the lack of a series decider in the drawn series between Australia and West Indies following the visitors’ stunning win at the Gabba. India and South Africa too drew a fiercely contested two-match series in December.
“…the WCC recommends men’s Test series be played across a minimum of three matches from the next ICC Future Tours Programme from 2028 (next cycle) onwards,” said the Committee.
The WCC also highlighted the inequality among ICC member nations and stressed on the need for taking the game to unchartered territories.
“The game owes a debt of gratitude to India… However, this reliance upon India belies the fact that the game needs to identify new markets to ensure its global growth, at a time when media rights beyond the current cycle are by no means guaranteed,” it said.Recently, West Indies Cricket CEO had claimed that the travelling expenses of its teams accounts for a chunk of the board’s budget.At the moment, the home team gets to keep all the media rights revenue generated from the series but the WCC wants the existing model to be reviewed.
“With evidence emerging of this now creating inequalities, the committee calls for this model to be reconsidered, with analysis to be conducted on the impact of home bodies absorbing these touring team costs as a way of redistributing income and adding greater context to all future bilateral cricket.”
(You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)
