Mumbai: The proposal to divide Test cricket into two tiers—Division 1 and Division 2—has been a topic of discussion for over a decade. According to the Australian newspaper 'The Age,' this issue is set to be addressed this month between International Cricket Council (ICC) chairman Jay Shah and officials from Cricket Australia (CA) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

Should these discussions yield positive results, Test cricket may become an even more exclusive domain than the current structure under the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. The suggested framework would categorize the top seven nations—Australia, England, India, South Africa, New Zealand, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka—into Division 1, while the remaining teams—Bangladesh, West Indies, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, and Ireland—would fall into Division 2.

This restructuring would notably enable the Big Three (Australia, England, and India) to compete against one another more frequently, with matches occurring twice every three years, as opposed to the current biennial meetings.

The topic was previously raised at the ICC level in 2016 but faced opposition from several boards, including the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). At that time, the BCCI's influence within the ICC was largely due to its willingness to support smaller nations by facilitating tours that improved their financial standings.

Over the years, the commercial viability of Test cricket has waned outside the Big Three nations. Cricket South Africa has openly favoured its T20 league, resulting in a reduced Test calendar. The success of their strategy—conducting shorter, more intense series—was evident when they reached the World Test Championship (WTC) final, surpassing England and India, who struggled in their five-Test series in Australia, losing 1-3.

Conversely, the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy series witnessed unprecedented attendance and viewership. The Boxing Day Test in Melbourne set a new record with 373,691 spectators in attendance. Australia’s Seven Network reported on Monday that their free-to-air coverage of the series achieved significant reach.

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