ICC paves way for Associate members like Netherlands and Afghanistan to get Test status

Dubai The ICC on Thursday paved the way for Associate Members to earn Test status by introducing the ICC Test Challenge which will take place every four years between the lowestranked Test team and winner of ICC InterContinental CupThe decision taken at the ICCs Executive Board meeting will effectively mean that one among Bangladesh and Zimbabwe the two lowestranked Test teams in ICC rankings will have to fight it out with the likes of The Netherlands Ireland or UAE for Test statusThe ICC Board approved the introduction of an ICC Test Challenge which will take place every four years between the lowest ranked Test team and the winner of the ICC Intercontinental Cup a media release issued by ICC saidThe proposal is that the 10th ranked side on the Reliance ICC Test Team Rankings on 31 December 2017 or at the conclusion of any series in progress at that time will play two fiveday matches at home and two fiveday matches away against the winner of the upcoming ICC Intercontinental Cup with the inaugural Challenge scheduled to take place during 2018 it saidNetherlands batsman Wesley Baressi L plays a shot as Ireland wicketkeeper Niall OBrien R looks on during the 2011 World Cup tie at The Eden Gardens Cricket Stadium in Kolkata PicAFPIn the next eight years two ICC Intercontinental Cup tournaments are planned with the first to run from 2015 to 2017 and the second to be held between 2019 and 2021The second ICC Test Challenge is scheduled for 2022The ICC Test Challenge now opens the door for Associate Members to play Test cricket and in doing so gives even greater context to the ICC Intercontinental Cup which will now be a pathway to Test cricket ICC Chief Executive David Richardson was quoted as saying by the releaseAt the meeting the board members followed up on the resolutions passed at the ICC Board Meeting in Singapore on February 8 2014The ICC Board members agreed on a longterm work plan to support the implementation of those resolutions which do not require constitutional change the release statedAt the same time the ICC Board authorised the drawing up of the necessary constitutional amendments which will be placed before the Full Council at the ICC Annual Conference to be held in Melbourne at the end of JuneOne of the cornerstones of the new financial model is an extended Future Tours Programme FTP which will now run until 2023Richardson on his part saidThe FTP is a very important piece of work as it gives Members longterm certainty in relation to both their playing schedule and financial planningSignificant progress has been made but there is still work to be done to develop a balanced calendar of tours and finalise these agreementsThe Bangladesh Cricket Board BCB also came in for lot of praise for a very successful organization of the recently concluded ICC World T20The ICC Board thanked the Bangladesh Cricket Board BCB for the successful staging of the ICC World Twenty20 Bangladesh 2014 and praised the Bangladesh government security agencies and the general public for their contributions and supportICC President Alan Isaac saidThe ICC World Twenty20 Bangladesh 2014 was an extremely successful event which was thoroughly enjoyed by the players officials spectators and media A lot of credit must be given to the Bangladesh Cricket Board BCB and the ICC team for putting up a memorable showAt the same time the ICC Board authorised the drawing up of the necessary constitutional amendments which will be placed before the Full Council at the ICC Annual Conference to be held in Melbourne at the end of JuneIt was also decided in the meeting that format and qualification process of the ICC World Twenty20 scheduled to be held in India in 2016 will also have the same formatThe ICC Board agreed that the same format be retained for the ICC World Twenty20 events in 2016 which will be staged in India For the 2016 event the top eight Full Members on the Reliance ICC T20I Team Rankings as on 30 April 2014 will automatically qualify for the second round while the ninth and 10th ranked Full Members will get automatic places in the first roundThe six qualifiers will progress from the 14team ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015 which will be staged in Ireland and Scotland from 9 July to 2 August 2015 during which a total of 51 matches will be playedThe ICC Cricket Committee will have Australian coach Darren Lehmann and West Indies Ottis Gibson as the representatives of national coaches as Gary Kirsten is set to complete his termAmong the other updates the Board also considered a general update on anticorruption and integrity while the IDI Board received a report from the Finance amp Commercial Affairs CommitteeIt includes updates on the commercial rights post2015 Host and Members Participation Agreements for the next commercial rights cycle online piracy event forecasts and audited financial statements for 2013The next ICC and IDI Board meetings will take place during the ICC Annual Conference week in Melbourne in June 2014