World Test Championship final: ICC mulls over playing conditions
The International Cricket Council (ICC) is revisiting the existing playing conditions for the World Test Championship, scheduled to be played between New Zealand and India from June 18. It is understood that the playing conditions will be finalized this week by the ICC. The global cricket body is set to clear the confusion over a reserve day for the all-important final. Here is more.
A look at ICC's initial idea over a reserve day
"The idea was to ensure that the match is played out in the 30 hours in the first five days. And the reserve day would come into play only if a total of 30 hours were not played in the first five days. That would have meant that the result had a lesser chance of being influenced by weather," an ICC source told TOI.
The clause clarified that a reserve day would be there
The ICC had earlier clarified that a sixth day (reserve day for the final) will be added if the number of playing hours lessen during the first five days. However, the clause has now been removed from the ICC website, as per TOI.
A decision on idea of joint-winners to be taken
The ICC will also decide on the concept of having joint-winners in case of a draw, which takes away the relevance of championship. "The idea of having joint-winners doesn't sit well given it's the first time a WTC final is being played. So, one has to have maximum options open to get a result out of the match," the source added.
What about the 2021-2023 cycle of ICC WTC?
While launching the WTC in 2019, the ICC had announced that it will continue with the championship in the 2021-2023 cycle as well. India are scheduled to play a five-Test series in England, which will mark the beginning of next WTC cycle. However, it remains to be seen if there will be any changes in allocation of points in the series.
The ICC board members to meet on June 1
All this will be finalized at the ICC Executive Board meeting on June 1. Notably, the fate of the impending T20 World Cup could also be discussed in the meeting. As of now, the tournament is scheduled to be played in India in the October-November window. However, the COVID-19 outbreak could force the organizers to shift it out of the nation.
