ICC to discuss radical proposal aimed at protecting Tests from rising influence of T20 leagues

The International Cricket Council will consider proposals designed to protect all formats of international cricket amid the proliferation of domestic Twenty20 leagues across the cricketing world, The Guardian reported.

Chief executives of the full member boards will meet to discuss the proposal in Kolkata in April, the report stated.

Among the many suggestions being mooted, ICC could restrict participation for players under the age of 32 to three domestic T20 leagues per year.

The proposal states that regional T20s will be organised in such a manner that a clear six-month period would be clear for international cricket from 2023 onwards.

To compensate for the strain caused on national boards, all leagues will be asked to pay 20% of a player’s contract value to their home board as mandatory compensation.

There could also be a cap on the number of overseas players that can participate in each domestic T20 league.

The proposal comes in light of a rising number of players, who are attributing greater importance to domestic T20 competitions rather that international cricket, especially the Test format.

Full members such as the West Indies have been hit hard by the current trend. The report stated that Cricket West Indies was leading the push and had the support of the English and Australian boards.

India too could come on board as the Indian Premier League already pays the 20% compensation figure for players it imports, the report stated.

The proposal aims to bring balance to the world cricket order, where international cricket teams are increasingly being forced to compete with domestic T20 tournaments over player player availability.

According to the report, there is a fear that the sport could be affected at the grassroots if revenues from these leagues are not utilised for player development.