Sri Lankan all-rounder Angelo Mathews has reacted strongly to reports suggesting that the England and Wales Cricket Board plans to reduce their future tours to Sri Lanka and Bangladesh to just one Test match in a bid to make the tours more commercially viable for the host boards. The proposed model would reportedly include one Test followed by white-ball matches.
According to multiple reports, the ECB is considering abandoning the principle of reciprocal home-away series in the next cycle of the ICC World Test Championship, which is scheduled to start with the Ashes in England next summer.
“We shouldn’t play one-off Tests with anyone! If a country doesn’t want to play more than one, so be it! There is no such thing as bigger nations and Test status is the same for all Test playing nations,” Mathews wrote on his X account. Mathews hits back at news of ECB reducing Test series with Sri Lanka to one-off (screenshot from X)
Reports also claimed that the ECB was in discussions with South Africa and Pakistan about the possibility of hosting a five-Test series for the first time in decades. This prompted another response from Mathews, who played 119 Tests for the island nation and amassed 8,214 runs at an average of 44.40 with 33 wickets. Mathews announced his debt relief from the longest year in June last year.
“You can’t have one team playing 20 matches and another playing 10 matches in the same championship cycle! Generating revenue and keeping Test cricket alive are two different things and shouldn’t be confused!” he added.
ONE TIME TEST TO GET WTC STATUS?
The development comes as cricket administrators are reportedly considering including one-off Tests in the next cycle of the WTC, while also exploring expanding the competition to 12 teams. Under the proposal, Ireland, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan could be included in a single format for the first time.
As part of the discussions, England are also considering playing their first Test in Zimbabwe since the 1996–97 season. However, the ECB is unlikely to visit or meet with Afghanistan outside of global ICC events.
The ECB is believed to be backing the one-Test series model on the basis that it could provide more opportunities for smaller nations while aligning with its strategy to preserve and sustain the longest format of the game.
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Published on:
May 10, 2026 0:36 AM IST
