Afganistan & Ireland get test status

http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci-icc/content/story/1105347.html

great news

Really? Ireland are rubbish and cant even put a decent limited over side together. Theyll struggle to fine 11 chaps who csn get the tine off work for a 5 day game.

This is also going to mean the absolute end of any notion of all nations playing all others regulalry home and away.

2 divisions has to happen.

I think it's good news because giving test status  is the way to get these nations to improve their standards....
It took Lanka 20 years to become competitive at least at home
and BD is getting there 17 years down the line...

That Zim regressed is more to do with their entire country regressing under Mugabe regime....actually around the year 2000 Zim had a pretty decent side.

Afghanistan is very exciting and will not need 20 years....they are a nation in haste trying to compensate for lost time due to war and internal strife.....characteristically similar to SA when they reentered, seemed in a hurry to make up for loss during apartheid years.

Ire's   peak was about 5 years back and since then they have stagnated but test cricket will give them more money from ICC , TV rights, touring fee etc....and all that will help.

 Morgan can go back and captain them for 7 more years and Rankin can play test cricket again 

I don't think there are two leagues yet but there will be a lot of bilateral tours between BD/IRE/ ZIM I think

I am ok with this, but fairly unmoved by it. As KP_Fan says, we'll probably mainly see the lower teams playing each other a lot. Fine, but they'll be wanting opportunities with the bigger teams and I just can't see them being fitted in. Ireland will obviously want to play England, but how do England fit that in to their already ridiculous schedule?

Afghanistan could go either way - who is going to want to tour there? I could see them falling away rather than progressing rapidly

In related news the ICC and BCCI have agreed a revised model for distributing ICC revenues
- basically India will get £100m more than the original ICC split from a few months back http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/story/1105328.html

Presumably they're going to have to find some extra money for Ireland & Bangladesh from down the back of the sofa

VTR wrote:I am ok with this, but fairly unmoved by it. As KP_Fan says, we'll probably mainly see the lower teams playing each other a lot. Fine, but they'll be wanting opportunities with the bigger teams and I just can't see them being fitted in. Ireland will obviously want to play England, but how do England fit that in to their already ridiculous schedule?

Afghanistan could go either way - who is going to want to tour there? I could see them falling away rather than progressing rapidly

Apparently there's a gap in England's schedule in 2019 for a 1-off test, Ireland are trying to get a Lords match. It should sell well given the Irish population in London & their propensity to turnout to support the homeland in any sport

Interesting - good for Ireland if so. Would question though, which other away matches against a larger side they will get in the next 5 years. That might be the only one?

Ireland don't merit Test status in the slightest. Apart from Ed Joyce, who's nearly 40, the rest of their players barely make a mark in the second tier of the county championship. Absolutely farcical decision that a side like Ireland blagged Test status because they once beat Pakistan(2007WC) and England(2011WC) in ODIs so they get Test status.

As for Afghanistan they've proven they where the premier association nation. In Rashid Khan they have a superstar under construction. Afghanistan have been playing 'home matches' in Delhi recently, so one would assume that will continue

Not exactly ideal that we now have another Test team that can't play at home and aren't likely to any time soon. I can't see many boards queuing up to arrange matches on their "home" patch of Delhi - might as well play India and make some cash in the process

Afghanistan hosted Ireland in Delhi for 3 T20s, 5 Odis and 1 4 day match. Matches where of good quality and decent crowds considering India weren't playing

Nathaniel Jacobs wrote:Afghanistan hosted Ireland in Delhi for 3 T20s, 5 Odis and 1 4 day match. Matches where of good quality and decent crowds considering India weren't playing

I could have been a bit more clear - I meant the larger teams. If Ireland are left playing Afghanistan, then nothing has really changed

Sorry misinterpreted what you where saying. I think Afghanistan's main targets will be Tests against Zimbabwe, Ireland, Sri Lanka and West Indies.

At this stage neither Afghan or Ireland have much to gain getting pumped by the big boys

Yes, that sounds realistic, I'd add Bangladesh to the list - I'll be interested to see which fixtures are announced for both teams. Bangladesh still don't get many bigger Test series, Windies and Sri Lanka are pretty marginalised and even New Zealand only seem to get away series in as the warm-up act to the main event. Zimbabwe aren't worth mentioning for other reasons.

Seems to me like it's two more teams going after the same slim pickings that are available

It's good news the ICC are now willing to do this and are clearly beginning to move towards having rid of the idea of associates, or maybe a league system. The two tiered system makes sense to me - and I saw something earlier in the week about the test championship being given the go ahead soon.

It's a start - a step in the right direction. Afghanistan's rise through the cricket ranks is one of the all time great sporting stories

Ireland are apparently lobbying for a Lord's Test .

I'd support that , as a one- off.  Might be a mismatch ; but I think it would be quite the occasion.

Back here after a while, and starting off here in this thread.
I would say it is a very good call from the ICC. In the case of Ireland, the call should have been made a bit earlier, they aren't as strong today as they used to be 4 years ago. Had test status been given then, there might have been greater continuity and they would have made a bit of progress by now.
Lits not kid ourselves, Ireland and Afghanistan aren't going to smash established test sides from the word go. On the contrary, there will be plenty of mis-matches in the initial years. But the only way now these sides are going to make progress is by playing test cricket. Staying in the associate ranks will not let these sides grow any more.
And the 2 sides, particularly Afghanistan, should be better than the West Indies and Zimbabwe pretty soon.

I always try to keep a kindly eye on Ireland's score. Pleased to see they're well on top in their 4 day international being played at Dublin against the Netherlands. The visitors are 140/5 in reply to Ireland's 477/6 declared. Andrew Balbirnie - a player I've liked for a while and who was unlucky not to get more opportunity when with Middlesex - made an undefeated 205.

The key will be games in my opinion, especially against each other and Zimbabwe, if they don't get matches they'll end up like bangladesh who still play like 6 tests a year

http://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/21749022/ireland-afghanistan-set-play-consistent-test-cricket

Good news as Ireland and Afghanistan will get a decent number of Test matches over the next few years, ensuring they get to bed in.

Ireland ‘s first test series will be against Pakistan in May.