The World Test Championship, by the looks of it, will have all twelve teams participating from 2027 onward but it will still be a single-tier competition. An extensive deliberation on the structure and format of the tournament has taken place between the ICC and the cricketing boards. Over a year has gone by since the initial conversations on the two-tier system with relegation and promotion involving the ICC and various national cricket boards were started.
During the recent quarterly ICC meetings, these proposals were a part of the discussions but they ended up being scrapped. The member boards were unable to reach a consensus due to the emergence of several barriers during the negotiations. The funding model was the most substantial sticking point that created doubts in the discussions among all parties concerned.
One of the main concerns raised by the nations participating in the ICC tournaments was that they would not get to play against the top-ranked teams. The ICC is still in the process of coming up with a solution that would be satisfactory to all concerned. It seems that the single-tier format is indeed the most practical option for guaranteeing fair representation of all twelve Test-playing nations in the future.
ICC might give all 12 full members a chance to play in the next WTC
There has been a lot of controversy surrounding the two-tier World Test Championship model but it is not going to happen and the International Cricket Council (ICC) instead might allow all 12 full members to participate in the next WTC cycle, which will start in mid-2027. At present, the World Test Championship (WTC) matches are being played by nine full members, while Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, and Ireland hold full-member status but are not part of the elite circle.
There was an assessment group led by the former New Zealand batter Roger Twose, which did look at the two-tier system idea but the group did not receive enough support during the ICC’s quarterly meeting in Dubai that just happened.
“There was a discussion on the two-tier system but certain members were not convinced about the model, and it was felt that a 12-team system should be tried out because it gives more chances for teams to play against each other,” a source close to the development informed PTI.
