ICC to move for World Test Championship (28 Feb 1997)

ICC keen on test world championship.

By Bob Dubery (dauphin@aztec.co.za)

JOHANNESBURG, February 28 - ICC chief executive Dave Richards, in Johannesburg for the first test match between South Africa and Australia, has said that a formally recognised test world championship could be instituted as early as next year.

Addressing a press conference at the Wanderers, he said that he would be contacting the controlling bodies of all nine test playing countries to seek backing for such a championship.

"The next ICC meeting is in Kuala Lumpur on March 23," said Richards. "Once we've agreed in principle then it's just a question of juggling itineraries to ensure that all the countries play each other home and away over, perhaps, a four year period."

"There is a feeling that we need to reaffirm what the players feel about the importance and status of test cricket, and a world championship would certainly raise it's profile," he added.

Matthew Engel, editor of Wisden, has suggested a points system whereby a team winning a series would get two points; the losing side gets no points; and the points are shared in case of a drawn series. Richards feels that this system is the fairest.

There is much talk of this series between South Africa and Australia being an unofficial showdown for the world test championship, although both captains, Hansie Cronje of South Africa and Mark Taylor of Australia, have played this aspect down.

South Africa's coach Bob Woolmer has expressed hopes that the ICC will initiate a formal world test championship.

"It is impossible to accurately determine which is the best side under the current circumstances," said Woolmer.

"One hopes that the ICC will go the route of having a world championship over four years. I'm not a great purist who believes five or six match series to be the ultimate."

"I think the way to go is to play three tests at home and three away against all the different sides and to accrue points depending on the results."

There may well be difficulties in arranging such a championship, and Woolmer has perhaps alluded to one in his remark about "purists" and "five or six test series".

In 1979/80 England played a three match series in Australia but the MCC declined to put the Ashes at stake, arguing that a series this short was not a fitting battleground for that venerable trophy.

Australia and the West Indies, too, may be less than keen on playing an abbreviated series for the Frank Worrell Trophy.

Another potential obstacle to the proposed world championship is the concern by the players over increasingly crowded international schedules.

Cronje and Taylor are both keen advocates of an international cricket players' association and have expressed to Richards their concerns about the hectic nature of international cricket. The two captains, South African wicket keeper Dave Richardson and Dr. Ali Bacher, who is chairman of the ICC's international playing affairs committee, met on Thursday to discuss various aspects of cricket from the player's point of view.

It's hard to see how the various governing bodies would be able to fit in the extra test matches that a world championship would require without sacrificing some of the lucrative one day international games.

Whilst the purists (that word again) would be happy to see a change in the balance of test and limited overs matches, the accountants and the paying public might not share their enthusiasm.