Looks like the International Cricket Council (ICC) wants to preserve the primacy of Test cricket, after all. In an unprecedented move, the game's governing body has decided to give Associate countries a shot at playing the longest format of the game by introducing the 'ICC Test Challenge'.
According to the proposal tabled at and approved by the ICC Board in Dubai on Thursday, the side ranked 10th (and last) on the ICC Test table on December 31, 2017, or at the conclusion of any series in progress at that time, will play two five-day matches at home and two five-day matches away against the winner of the ICC Intercontinental Cup. The first edition of the 'ICC Test Challenge' will be held in 2018.
The ICC Intercontinental Cup, a tournament played over two-and-a-half years, will run from 2015 to 2017 and 2019 to 2021. Consequently, the second 'ICC Test Challenge' will be held in 2022.
The modalities are yet to be finalised, though. It is, however, certain that the lowest-ranked Test team "will not lose its Test status, voting rights or privileges". That's how an ICC insider put it. He also revealed that the playing conditions of the same will be formulated by the ICC Chief Executives' Committee. "You must realise this a noble and novel idea. It's a bid day for the Associates. Who knows, one of them could become the 11th Test-playing nation in four years from now."
As of now, several questions remain unanswered. What if the I-Cup winner manages two wins and two losses or, for that matter, four respectable draws against the Test team? Will they still be promoted
What if the Test nation fields a second-string side? After all, they have nothing to lose.
Will the No. 10-ranked Test nation be duly compensated for playing four five-day matches against an Associate? Wouldn't they (Bangladesh, as of now) be better off signing a bilateral deal with a big-ticket board like the BCCI?
Also, it's common knowledge that the likes of Bangladesh and Zimbabwe are also-rans in the world of Test cricket. What's the point of fielding a proven, champion Associate side take on the worst Test team?
"The 'ICC Test Challenge' now opens the door for Associate members to play Test cricket and in doing so gives even greater context to the ICC Intercontinental Cup which will now be a pathway to Test cricket," ICC chief executive David Richardson said.
The ICC Board also agreed a long-term work plan to support the implementation of the resolutions (read 'Position Paper', granting all executive powers to the 'Big Three') which do not require constitutional change. At the same time, it also authorised the drawing up of the necessary constitutional amendments which will be placed before the full council at the ICC Annual Conference to be held in Melbourne in June-end.
Following the success of the ICC World Twenty20 in Bangladesh, the ICC Board agreed that the same format be retained for the 2016 ICC World Twenty20 in India. The top eight teams will automatically qualify for the second round, while the ninth and 10th-ranked teams will get automatic places in the first round. The six qualifiers will progress from the 14-team ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015, which will be staged in Ireland and Scotland.
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