Surplus one-day series faces axe
The Champions Trophy could be scrapped in favour of staging the World Twenty20 every two years, International Cricket Council CEO David Richardson said.
The Champions Trophy could be scrapped in favour of staging the World Twenty20 every two years, according to International Cricket Council (ICC) CEO David Richardson.
Pakistan thrashed India by 180 runs to win the Champions Trophy at The Oval on Sunday, with a worldwide television audience of millions watching the stunning final.
But some officials believe the eight-team event is now too similar to the World Cup, which the ICC, controversially, has decided should be contested by just 10 teams from the 2019 event in England.
India is due to stage the next Champions Trophy in 2021 but Richardson warned on Monday that it was by no means certain the event would go ahead, with the former wicketkeeper for SA saying future World Twenty20s could feature up to 20 teams.
We want to “differentiate our global events from each other so that they can be standalone and create maximum interest every time”, Richardson said on the eve of the ICC’s annual conference in London.
“At this stage, the next Champions Trophy is still scheduled for India in 2021. Whether that gets changed, the consideration has been given to changing to two T20s in a four-year cycle, which would mean swapping the Champions Trophy for a World T20.”
He added: “The fact is that World T20s attract a lot of interest, they generate significant revenue for the television companies. But most importantly, from our point of view, they provide us with an opportunity to give more opportunities to more teams.
“A 16-team World T20, even a 20-team World T20, down the line is something that we would like to look at.
“With a 10-team World Cup, we’re hoping to increase the competitiveness of matches and the standard of the tournament as a whole.
“It might not be necessary to continue with two 50-over tournaments going forward.”
This week’s ICC gathering is also set to decide whether to grant Test status to Ireland and Afghanistan, with an announcement expected on Thursday.
“It’s never wise to try and make a call too early, but certainly the applications of both are very well founded,” said Richardson. “They both, on the face of it, meet the majority, if not all, of the full member criteria ....
“I’m optimistic that they’ll be given serious consideration to have every chance of succeeding.”