Lalit Modi: The saviour of English cricket?

Daniel Brigham writes in Wisden Cricketer that by brazenly setting up a scheduling clash between the Champions League and the county season, Lalit Modi is showing how archaic the English domestic game is.

It’s time that the ECB and the counties realise that to keep up with the rest of the world, a more marketable number of teams – 10 or fewer – is a must so that the talent isn’t so thinly spread. A shorter season is also necessary, running from May to the end of August. This way it will avoid the rain, the cold, the football and fan burnout.

A severe kick up the backside shouldn’t have been needed to stir the counties into action, but that’s what Modi has provided. History tells us it won’t provoke much of a reaction, but surely even the counties must realise something has to be done now.