International cricket chiefs Tuesday recommended that the World Cup, a gruelling six-week marathon, be slashed from 14 to 10 teams. They also backed a Test championship to be introduced by 2013. The meeting of the International Cricket Council's Chief Executives' Committee (CEC) called for the ICC to introduce league championships for both Test and One-Day International cricket in order to introduce context for future tours. The top four teams in the Test league should qualify for a championship playoff and the first playoff should be staged in 2013. The chief executives suggested that a one-day league should run from April 2011 until April 2014, culminating in the crowning of a One-Day International champion. The league championship would be separate from the four-yearly World Cup. The meeting also recommended major changes to the formats of both the World Cup and the ICC World Twenty20. It was recommended that the number of teams in the World Cup should be reduced from the 14 that will compete in next year's event to 10, while 16 teams should play in the Twenty20, up from the 12 that competed earlier this year. There was also a call for a Twenty20 international rankings table. ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat, who chaired the meeting, said he was excited by the proposals. “Restructuring international cricket is a significant strategic challenge and one that must be dealt with. I am grateful to the CEC and its working group for making such far-reaching proposals,” he said. Anti-corruption process The International Cricket Council will consider a “wide-ranging and, if necessary, independent review” of anti-corruption measures following the fixing allegations against Pakistan players, the sport's governing body said Tuesday. “It is not enough that the ICC is regarded by other sporting organizations as a leader in the battle against corruption in sport,” ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said following a meeting of the council's chief executives' committee in Cape Town. “We must continue to assess and, where necessary, improve our processes. “The recent allegations have reminded everyone of the need to remain vigilant and to ensure public confidence in our sport,” he said. The ICC will also seek to engage governments in its bid to tackle corruption in the sport, Lorgat said. Lorgat also criticized what he said was irresponsible reporting and “wild speculation” by certain sections of the media. “It is important for the media to be responsible when reporting on matters of corruption in our sport. The reputation and safety of a player is also paramount and to suggest anything untoward without any substantiation or firm evidence is irresponsible and most unfair on a player.” Also Tuesday, cricket magazine Wisden released parts of an interview with former ICC president Ehsan Mani in which the Pakistani said the Pakistan Cricket Board has failed to get the anti-corruption message through to its players. Mani echoed Lorgat's call for conversation between the ICC and national governments over more control of betting on cricket. “From what I understand, whenever India play a one-day match, $200 million to $300 million will be bet,” Mani was quoted as saying. “This is the time for the ICC to say to the Indian government that you have to bring this into the loop.
