ICC plans to scrap five-day Tests from 2023

Cricket's apex body, the International Cricket Council, plans to scrap five-day Tests from 2023. The ICC could make four-day Tests mandatory from 2023 as part of the World Test Championship, primarily to free up the crowded calendar. Tests have been played over five days through most of their 140-year history. England has backed the plan.

A spokesperson of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said, it could provide a sustainable solution to the complex



scheduling needs and players' workloads. BCCI President Sourav Ganguly has said, it was too early to make a comment on the matter. 

Last week, Cricket Australia's chief executive Kevin Roberts emphasised the need to seriously consider the matter. A four-day Test is not a new concept. The last such Test was played between England and Ireland earlier this year. South Africa and Zimbabwe too played one in 2017.