Top flight: Australia, England, India in talks to split Tests in two

India, England and Australia are also conscious of the rapid growth of Twenty20 franchise leagues and private ownership, all of which is creating more competition for players and calendar space. The principals of the powerful GMR Group, owners of the Delhi Capitals in the IPL and recent buyers of the Hampshire county cricket club, were a visible presence at the SCG Test.

“It comes down to profitable cricket versus unprofitable cricket,” one industry source said.

The concept of two tiers in Test cricket was previously floated at ICC level in 2016, with a model where seven nations would compete in the top division and five in the second rank.

However it was ultimately shelved when the BCCI heard the protests of smaller nations, who argued that their hard-won right to enter the exclusive club of Test-playing nations would be degraded by the structure.

At the time, the BCCI, Sri Lanka Cricket, the BCB and Zimbabwe Cricket opposed the proposal, while it had support from the boards of Australia, England, South Africa, New Zealand, Pakistan and West Indies.

“The BCCI is against the two-tier Test system because the smaller countries will lose out and the BCCI wants to take care of them,” then-BCCI president Anurag Thakur said in 2016. “It is necessary to protect their interests.

“In the two-tier system, they will lose out on a lot, including revenue and the opportunity to play against top teams. We don’t want that to happen. We want to work in the best interests of world cricket and that is why our team plays against all the countries.”

Eight years later, however, money is talking ever louder to the big three boards, with the Indian broadcaster Disney Star seeing a growing gap between the marquee series and others. Australian broadcasters Foxtel and Seven are also eager for more matches involving India and England.

“The more the better!” one senior broadcast figure said.

Shah won the support of Australia and England to take over as ICC chair last year, ahead of the expiry of his final term as BCCI secretary.

A change in cricket’s structure would mean the current world Test championship only runs for one more cycle, despite providing greater jeopardy and context since its inception in 2019.

It has been subject to sustained criticism from England, in particular, with Ben Stokes’ team arguing that the WTC is too hard to understand and penalises teams that play more cricket. England have never been close to qualifying for the final.

“In all honesty, the world Test championship, it is a bit confusing,” Stokes said in New Zealand in November. “I don’t look at it … it’s a real weird one knowing that you’re playing for something over a long period of time.”