8216;Minimum Tests8217; is a half-measure

Bangladesh,since their ascension to Test status,have met Sri Lanka 14 times and Australia only 4.

In the home summer of 2013,the West Indies had been scheduled to play six Test matches. Cricket fans in the Caribbean,however,have had to settle for just two,that too against Zimbabwe. First,a two-Test series against Sri Lanka was postponed,with both boards agreeing to let their players play the IPL instead. Pakistan,meanwhile,had been scheduled to tour the islands for two Tests,five ODIs and three T20s in June and July. When the West Indies board realised that it would clash with a one-day tri-series also involving India and Sri Lanka,they decided to postpone the Pakistan Tests,while retaining the limited-overs portion of the tour.

This is by no means an isolated set of events. South Africas tour of Sri Lanka,later this year,was supposed to include three Tests as well as five ODIs and three T20s. The Tests have been postponed to 2015.

The ICC have taken note of this trend,and their Cricket Committee,who recently met at Lords,have recommended that all Test-playing teams feature in a minimum number of Test matches over a four-year period if they are to retain their Test status. No such step has been enforced yet: it will have to go through the ICCs Executive Committee first. Such a step,assuming that it sets a rigorous enough minimum,will only attack one part of the problem.

Bilateral tours are arranged by dialogue between two boards,often revolving around commercial considerations,with the ICC playing no role in deciding how often the teams play each other,and in what formats.

New Zealand,therefore,have featured in 14 Test series since 2010,with only three of them extending as far as three Tests. South Africa and Pakistan,since 2002,have featured in six series,but theyve only totalled 14 Tests. In the same period,England and South Africa have played one series fewer but seven Tests more. England and Australia,meanwhile,are about to embark on back-to-back,home-and-away Ashes series of five Tests each.

Bangladesh,since their ascension to Test status,have met Sri Lanka 14 times and Australia only four times. Theyve played seven Tests against India,but not even one away from home.

Its a bizarre situation. Setting teams a minimum target of Test matches without regulating who plays whom,where and for how long will only exaggerate it.

Karthik is a principal correspondent based in Delhi

karthik.krishnaswamyexpressindia.com