Michael Vaughan demands radical changes to Test structure

Former England skipper says more funding is needed to toughen up the game

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22 January 2013

Michael Vaughan has called for a complete overhaul of Test cricket to ensure the five-day game remains the pinnacle of the sport.

The former England captain, who in 2005 led the team to Ashes victory for the first time in 18 years, wants superior financial incentive for the elite sides and two divisions to produce tougher competition and lend greater context to Test series.

Vaughan is concerned that countries like New Zealand, West Indies and Sri Lanka, whose national boards lack the funds to compete with those offered by Twenty20 franchises around the world, will slip further behind.

He believes the International Cricket Council should take decisive steps to improve the situation.

“It’s not good for the game when you turn on the television and see New Zealand bowled out for 45 by South Africa,” Vaughan told Standard Sport. “You’ve always had mismatches but I fear for the likes of West Indies, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

“It’s about finance. These guys are getting opportunities around the world that they don’t get if they play Tests for their country. If Test cricket is the pinnacle, you should incentivise it by increasing the rewards and that might have to come from the ICC, to fund the game.

“I don’t see the sponsors in certain countries able to give the kind of money T20 franchises can afford, as the deals aren’t like what they are in England or India, for example. It’s very difficult but something has to happen.

“Test cricket needs to change. It does need to have the best teams playing against each other more often and I’d always have two divisions from now on. It would be good for the game.

“It’s a tough one to get right but if you had two divisions, there would be other countries who don’t currently play Test cricket given the opportunity to do so. You would be spreading Tests around the world and you would have the better teams taking each other on more frequently.

“We’re in a world where money does control things and we need a system where there are greater rewards on offer for the teams in the top division. You would have to work hard to make sure you were one of them.”

While the England and Wales Cricket Board have been able to resist the prospect of a player choosing the Indian Premier League over international cricket, the situation usually affects the first part of the English summer.

England have staged series in May and June against under-strength or poorly-prepared teams from West Indies and Sri Lanka, because their stars have been involved in the IPL.

The same could happen later this year, when New Zealand tour England for two Tests and five limited-overs fixtures before the Ashes series.

“I dread to think what team New Zealand will bring here, because the teams who come to England in May often have IPL players,” added Vaughan, an ambassador for the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. “It’s unfortunate.

“When certain players come back to play for their countries, they must think they’re playing for a second-string team because they don’t get the rewards. You can see why mutiny or disharmony might happen in a team if they don’t think there’s any structure at the top.”

Vaughan is confident, however, that back-to-back series against New Zealand will not blunt England’s sharpness as they build towards the Ashes.

“I would be very surprised if in a year from now, Alastair Cook hadn’t won two Ashes series,” he added.

The Michael Vaughan Charity Bike Ride will raise funds for the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation and Chance to Shine. Go to www.laureus.com/michaelvaughan odibikeride or www.chancetoshine.org.

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Michael Vaughan demands radical changes to Test structure

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