Eoin Morgan, England’s limited overs captain, is lukewarm on the idea of one-day internationals becoming part of an overall league system but says he would welcome the prospect of spreading the game globally by increasing the number of fixtures against associate nations.
The International Cricket Council meets for its annual conference in Edinburgh next week with a proposal for creating a 13-team one-day competition, one that would increase the relevance of bilateral fixtures from 2019 onwards, on the list of topics to be discussed.
Like the mooted two-division Test championship, there is increasing desire to give 50-over international cricket more context beyond the official rankings and bragging rights, given the rise in popularity of domestic Twenty20 leagues around the world.
Under this new proposal, teams would play a three-match series against all opposition over a three-year period – 36 matches in total – with the two best sides playing off for the title and the bottom nation facing relegation to the ICC’s World Cricket League.
Including 13 teams would mean that sides such as Ireland and Afghanistan, who already sit in the one-day rankings, and the best team from the World Cricket League – currently Netherlands – would be guaranteed more matches against the established cricketing nations.
And while Morgan, who made his international debut for Ireland in 2006 before switching to England three years later, is unsure on the need of an additional one-day title beyond the World Cup and the Champions Trophy, the 29-year-old does see a benefit for the expanding the sport.
Asked about the proposed 13-team league, Morgan replied: “I am not sure it needs it; cricket is in a reasonable position at the moment. The Champions Trophy in England next year will highlight that. It is a great tournament where something is on every game, while the World Cup goes on a lot longer.
“The prospect of playing against associate nations more often and giving them as much cricket as possible is a really good way of growing your sport and I am all for that.
“It is interesting to see how the ICC get those games in ahead of different series when the schedule is already jam-packed, but I am all for growing the sport,” Morgan added.
The plan, which would still allow teams to arrange one-day fixtures outside of their obligated league matches, already has support from Cricket Australia.
James Sutherland, the CA chief executive, said: “My feeling is that in between World Cups it would be beneficial to add some structure and additional context to the one-day games that are played on a bilateral basis.”
