NEW T20 UNSURE OF COUNTIES’ GOODWILL

NEWS that counties have begun to question some of the thornier details of the new ‘all singing, all dancing’ T20 proposed by the England and Wales Cricket Board in 2020 comes as little surprise.

Part of the problem is that smaller grounds feel they will be further marginalised once the hosting venues, almost certainly those with the biggest stadia, have been decided.

Suddenly, the £1.3m a year sweetener clubs signed up to does not look that generous, given that hosting clubs will be paid £150,000 a year and allowed to keep 30 per cent of revenues made during matches.

It looks, from some angles, as if the new T20 is little more than a debt reduction scheme for the Test match counties, some of which have got themselves into financial difficulties.

Aside from the £1.1bn broadcasting deal from 2020, which is largely predicated on this new T20 competition, there is much that needs sorting before this has the goodwill of all counties and can take flight.