Ravi Shastri sends strong suggestion to ICC to save Test cricket

Ravi Shastri, the former India coach has spoken about the sustainability of Test cricket at a symposium organised by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) on Sunday.

Tets cricket with its dying reach outside of India, England, and Australia needs a major boost to reach the rest of the world. The ICC World Test Championship was organized to keep up the competitive nature of the format. However, it has not managed to attract fans to the stadiums apart from the big three teams.

Shastri said that Test cricket must remain competitive and the only way to do so was to have only the relatively stronger teams competing in this format. He advised about narrowing down the number of teams to six or seven from the regulatory 12.

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Six Or Seven Teams, Start Promotion Or Relegation Systen: Ravi Shastri On Future Of Test Cricket

“When you don’t have quality, that is when the ratings drop, there are fewer people in the crowd, its meaningless cricket, which is the last thing sport wants,” Shastri said at World Cricket Connects, an event at Lord’s hosted by the MCC.

“You have 12 test match teams. Bring it down to six or seven and have a promotion and relegation system. You can have two tiers but let the top six keep playing to sustain the interest in Test cricket. You can spread the game in other formats, like T20,” added the former India coach.

Former Australian cricketer and former coach Justin Langer meanwhile said that while he loves the growth of modern T20 cricket, he wants Test cricket to be saved for the impact it can make on the younger generation. He gave the example of Shamar Joseph's match-winning spell in Briabane that helped West Indies end their losing streak of Test cricket in Australia. Later he also went on to play for the Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2024 where Langer was the head coach.

“It had Australia enthralled and it brought the Caribbean to life. Last week we saw a million people turn up to see India celebrated for winning the World Cup. That is bilateral cricket and international cricket," Langer said.

Finally, Mark Nicholas, MCC President said that the suggestions need to be worked upon and thought about and that Test cricket needs revenue to be kept relevant and alive.

“T20 cricket is the behemoth that everybody wants. It is where the new market is, where the fans are and where the money is. In cricket, money is seen as a dirty word but it shouldn’t be because it is the only way to sustain the game,” Nicholas said.

After a brief spell of ODI World Cup followed by the T20 World Cup in a space of six months, Test cricket is back with England hosting the West Indies for a three-match series. The first Test kicks off at Lord's on July 10. It is also the final Test match of James Anderson, the long servent of Test cricket.

Heading into this series, England are placed at the bottom of the WTC 2023-25 points table while West Indies are sixth. England lost to India 4-1 in an away series, while the Windies won against the Aussies at the Gabba.

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