Discussion Of Including More Teams In World Cup Only Happen Once In Four Years: Aakash Chopra

Former Indian cricketer-turned commentator Aakash Chopra has lamented at the fact that the discussions around increasing the number of participating teams in the 50-over World Cup happen only once every four years.

The 2019 edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup came under huge scrutiny because of the governing body’s decision to reduce it to a ten-team affair as compared to the previous quadrennial event in Trans-Tasman which involved 14 teams.

In his latest video on his official Youtube channel, Aakash Chopra reckoned that the debate on increasing the participating teams will once again be reignited once the next World Cup rolls around.

‘’The one thing I feel is that we talk about this only once in four years. When the 2019 World Cup happened, there was a discussion of including more teams, that the ten-team tournament is not fine. The same story will be there when the World Cup happens again,” said Aakash Chopra, while responding to a fan question.

The former Indian Test opener believes that increasing the number of participating teams in the 50-over World Cup will be a mere token gesture given the fact that the small teams do not play regularly against the top nations during the four-year cycle.

‘’If we think of bringing in a lot of teams as the tournament happens once in four years, I feel it is a token gesture. There is no reality in it because after the 2019 World Cup, I agree there was Covid in between but if we consider between 2015 and 2019, how many times big teams played against the small teams,” reckoned Aakash Chopra.

Chopra further added that Test-playing nations should regularly play against the smaller countries in order to give them more exposure.

‘’If they play one match in four years, there is not going to be any improvement in their cricket. If you have to do anything, you need to utilize the four years in between. Every big Test-playing nation should be obliged to play matches against one or two associate nations,” added Chopra.

Recently, there have been reports that the ICC is mulling over reverting back to a 14-nation 50-over World Cup during the 2023-2031 cycle.

Chopra, however, believes that the same can be done as far as the T20 World Cup is concerned.

”I still feel you can increase the numbers in T20, have the qualification rounds at the start and then make the small groups and play a round-robin in the end. It is okay even if it is a little long and I think that’s what ICC is already planning,” concluded Chopra.

The upcoming edition of the T20 World Cup will see 16 teams sweating it out to claim the title.

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