SYDNEY: Former Indian coach Ravi Shastri called on Wednesday for a two-tier structure in Test cricket with relegation and promotion to ensure the survival of the red-ball game.

His comments follow the blockbuster fourth Test between India and Australia that drew a record 373,691 spectators to the Melbourne Cricket Ground over five enthralling days.

That beat the previous record of 350,534 at the same ground during the 1936-37 Ashes series against England, when Donald Bradman ruled the sport and Tests were played over six days.

Shastri, now a commentator, said he could not remember “a bigger advertisement for Test cricket” and said it proved the five-day game continued to hold its own in the face of ever-increasing T20 franchise cricket.

But the 62-year-old said it also reinforced his view that for Test cricket to survive, the biggest teams needed to be playing each other more often.

“To break crowd records that have stood for nearly a century... is testimony to the fact that when the best teams play, the toughest and best format of the game is still alive and thriving,” he said in a column for The Australian newspaper.

“It was also a sound reminder to the ICC (International Cricket Council) that the best should play the best for Test cricket to survive.

“I will say that there’s too much of a clutter otherwise.

“This match further emphasises why we need a two-tier system with the top 6-8 teams and then include promotion and demotion. You will not get these kinds of crowds if you don’t have two proper teams playing.”

The ICC has been contemplating a two-tier system for years to keep the format competitive but the plans have never got off the ground.

A proposal for a de facto premier league featuring the top seven sides was on the agenda of the world governing body in 2016.

It was scrapped after the powerful Indian board led a backlash.

While India stand to gain from playing more matches against teams such as England and Australia, the BCCI said at the time the cost to smaller cricketing nations was too great.

Shastri also said the Melbourne game proved that Tests should remain five days, amid chatter that they should be reduced to four to help streamline schedules.

Published in Dawn, January 2nd, 2025