Giles puts the focus back on Test game in world title chase
England team director wants to redress balance Pay rises planned for long-format specialists
It is only two weeks since England’s World Cup victory but Ashley Giles has signalled a policy shift back towards Test cricket after four years spent concentrating on the one-day game.
Giles, the England team director, is now focused on gearing England towards winning the inaugural World Test Championship, which culminates in a final in this country, almost certain to be at Lord’s, in June 2021.
His predecessor, Andrew Strauss, identified the 2019 World Cup as England’s top priority when he was appointed in 2015 but with that achieved, Giles is shaping England’s game back towards the longer format, which will be greeted warmly by many England supporters.
Giles will be spending the extra windfall from the England and Wales Cricket Board’s new £1billion rights deal on rewarding Test specialists better in an effort to persuade young players not to chase Twenty20 contracts early in their career at the expense of first-class cricket. To that end, the biggest percentage pay rise for the new central contracts that come into force later this year is for Test specialists, whose salaries will rise from £475,000 to £650,000.
Giles will also create new contracts for a group of young fast bowlers, giving him greater control over their workloads in county cricket, and arrange winter placements overseas.
There will be investment in county pitches to help batsmen prepare for Test cricket by playing on better surfaces as well as continuing with a Dukes ball with a reduced seam, which it is believed will help bowlers learn how to take wickets without having to rely on conditions. Reaching the 2021 Test Championship final will be crucial given the popularity of Test cricket in this country.
“When Strauss came in he said we have to swing the balance right towards white-ball cricket and that’s what we did. All the attention and the way we play county cricket was definitely focused on the shorter forms. We need to do that in red-ball cricket now,” said Giles.
“Test cricket is really important to us in this country. We haven’t neglected Test cricket for whiteball cricket, but focus has definitely been more on that side and we just need to redress that balance now.
“It’s fundamentally important that our county cricket system is producing good players. And what we’ve seen this year is sides preparing better pitches to play on, scores have been better and there seems to be better cricket round the country; really competitive cricket. But it is not going to be an overnight change.
“We won’t suddenly start producing dozens of top-order players but the stats would say when we’ve had a deep and successful batting order we’ve had a really strong County Championship and high scores with lots of runs. We certainly need the network and county system to work with us.”
The Test Championship starts with the Ashes series but England’s two Tests in New Zealand this winter will not count. That series was set up alongside the Test Championship and it is likely it will be used by England as an opportunity to rest senior players and blood some youngsters.
‘It’s fundamentally important that our county cricket system is producing good players’
The Test Championship has taken the International Cricket Council years finally to bring to reality and was initially rejected by its broadcast partners, who preferred the advertising opportunities offered by 50-over cricket.
But now it has replaced the Champions Trophy in the ICC roster of events, although prize money will still be below that of the World Cup for which England shared winnings of more than £2 million.
Rights to the Test Championship final are still to be sold but are likely to be awarded to Star Sports, the ICC’S current broadcast partner.
It will be a Star Sports decision whether to sell the UK rights to Sky or a free-to-air broadcaster.
The Test Championship comprises the nine top-ranked teams, with points available for each match. Series count for 120 points distributed across the number of games so, for example, 60 each for a two-test series and 24 in a fivematch Ashes series. The top two teams will qualify for the final.