India, Australia and England need to share wealth to keep Test cricket healthy, advocates Cricket Australia chair

Cricket Australia chairman Mike Baird has urged India, England and Australia to share their wealth with other nations to ensure the best players keep playing Test cricket. The comments come in the aftermath of South Africa sending a second-string squad to New Zealand for a two-match Test series. Instead, the regulars will compete in the SA20, South Africa’s T20 league which is scheduled for the same dates. Former Australia captain Steve Waugh had slammed the approach and stated that the administrators “don’t care” about Test cricket’s poor state. Baird called on other member nations of the International Cricket Council (ICC) to discuss player retention for teams outside the ‘big three’ to ensure competitive Test cricket. Explained | Why South Africa are sending a rookie squad to New Zealand for two-Test series He also argued that Cricket Australia (CA), the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) should share their financial resources with the likes of South Africa, New Zealand, the West Indies and Sri Lanka, now that it has become clear that bilateral tours alone are not sufficient. “If we’re in a position that national teams aren’t being prioritised, then we’ve got a lot of work to do,” Baird told Sydney Morning Herald. “Ultimately, that might mean costs and consequences for the leading countries. There is undoubtedly an economic element. But there’s also a commonsense element in terms of the way we schedule and the way we collectively as members prioritise. So there is strong resolve, but we need to move, I think, at a much quicker pace." Last year, BCCI's share in the ICC revenues jumped to 38.5% for the 2024-2027 cycle. It will see the Indian cricket board earn approximately $230 million. ECB and CA will earn in single-digit percentages of 6.89 ($41 million) and 6.25 ($37.53 million) per cent respectively. “We need to support, retain and grow Test cricket, and we’re going to have to think through our priorities and part of that is how we distribute funding. I don’t think we can wait, so we have to look at how that funding is allocated, is it going to the right things, and yes one of the solutions which has been put forward is increasing Test match payments to make them more competitive. They’re all the things we need to bring forward. “But in simple terms, do we need to prioritise retaining Test cricket? Absolutely. Will we do everything possible to ensure that is done, absolutely. And certainly, we will have to talk to states and various stakeholders on this, but my strong sense is Australia is prepared to pay a price or a cost, which is additional contributions towards making that happen.” Steve Waugh had asked cricketer’s leaders to intervene in Test cricket’s drop because if they didn’t “then Test cricket doesn’t become Test cricket because you’re not testing yourself against the best players.” “As a hero of the game, when Steve Waugh talks, people listen, as they rightly should. I have deep passion for this game as an administrator, and there’s also responsibility. So I think he’s right to call that out, not just for us, but to all administrators,” Baird said. “The outcome has to be that national teams are the No.1 priority at all times. Sometimes there might be reasons and obstacles that make that difficult, and we need to know what they are in detail and consider the solutions and what we can do to help. “This is not about picking who’s done what right or wrong, it is collective ownership. We’ve got a challenge, we all need to come together and solve it and we need to do it quickly. There are moments that we are starting to see that tell us it is getting away.”