Marylebone Cricket Club recommends minimum of three Test matches from next FTP

The Marylebone Cricket Club’s (MCC) World Cricket Committee has recommended the conducting of a minimum three-match Test series from the next Future Tours Programme (FTP) in 2028. In a statement released by the WCC, the committee noted the shortage of a series decider. Both the Test series between Australia and West Indies, and South Africa and India were two Test-match series that ended in 1-1 draws.

“The meeting occurred in the immediate aftermath of two fantastic men’s Test matches played in Brisbane and Hyderabad, which excited supporters of the Test match format, yet also left them ruing the absence of a possible third match decider in the Australia v West Indies two match series. In support of the thrilling Test cricket currently being played and the importance of sustaining the traditional format of the game, the WCC recommends men’s Test series be played across a minimum of three matches from the next ICC Future Tours Programme (FTP) from 2028 onwards,” the Committee said in a statement.

The WCC, that is chaired by Kumar Sangakkara, also highlighted the inequality among ICC members and said that it was important for the game to be taken to unchartered territories.

“The game owes a debt of gratitude to India, with its insatiable thirst for cricket driving the wealth in the global game. 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. With this uncertainty identified and on the back of the momentum built through this year’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in the USA and Caribbean and the build up to the 2028 Olympics in the USA, the acceleration of the USA as a growth market for cricket would seem a natural consideration,” the WCC said.

Absorb touring team costs in bilateral series

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.

“The WCC has long been aware of the game’s global economics being heavily imbalanced and detrimental to touring teams who bear the cost of travel, whilst all revenue is retained by the host body based upon a historical expectation of quid pro quo’ touring arrangements.

“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.”

It also wants equal distribution of games over an FTP cycle.

“The committee also feels the imbalance of the current FTP unfairly impacts some nations by restricting where valuable content can be played in calendar windows.

“From the commencement of the next cycle in 2028, it would be preferable for a more equitable split of matches to provide a more balanced opportunity for nations to access key dates and opposition,” the WCC added.

With inputs from PTI