Putting an end to the long-time debate, the prestigious Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) has said that it will continue backing the five-day format of the game. MCC chief executive Guy Lavender has said even though there are reasons to consider the possibility of four-day Tests, but retaining five-day Test matches make sense "from a cricketing perspective".
"The MCC's view is that five-day Tests from a cricketing perspective make sense," ESPNcricinfo quoted Lavender as saying.
"There is another perspective around four-day Tests from a customer experience perspective and looking at the difficulties of fitting in the tours programme and a congested international fixture list with the emergence of domestic Twenty20 tournaments," he added.
Cricket South Africa (CSA) has scheduled a four-day Test against Zimbabwe on Boxing Day but is awaiting approval from the International Cricket Council (ICC) for the game.
However, some of South Africa's players, including captain Faf du Plessis and Dean Elgar, have said they would prefer to keep Test cricket the way it is.
"I am a fan of five-day Test cricket. I believe the great Test matches have gone to the last hour of the last day on day five. That's what is so special about Test cricket," du Plessis was quoted as saying after Proteas defeat Bangladesh in the first Test in Potchefstroom in a match that went to the fifth day.
Meanwhile, opening batsman Elgar also echoed similar sentiments and said that there should be no experimentation with the traditional format of the game.
"I don't think you should tinker with something that's not broken. If you go and play around the world, Test cricket is followed quite well," said Elgar.
(With Agency Inputs)
