At a meeting at Lord’s, the Board agreed that the Friends Provident t20 competition will be reduced from 16 pool matches a season to ten pool matches a season played in a dedicated ‘window’ during June and July. The knock-out phases of the competition will remain unchanged.
The Board agreed a package of financial measures to ensure that Counties will not suffer adverse economic impact from the reduction in the amount of One-Day cricket.
The Board further agreed to retain the LV= County Championship as two divisions of nine teams playing 16 matches a season.
With regard to the Clydesdale Bank competition, the Board expressed concern that the proposed addition of a quarter-final round could lead to no guaranteed one-day cricket for Counties during August and September.
The Board therefore determined that two options be independently reviewed before the next Board Meeting in May. These options are:
Four pools of five teams with a quarter-final, semi-final and final giving eight guaranteed matches
Or the retention of the current structure of three pools of seven teams with semi-finals and final.
The Board reviewed proposals to enhance and support County Business operations and approved a four year strategy to assist with the development and marketing of domestic cricket.
Following recommendations from the Major Match Group, the Board approved a comprehensive package of matches to be awarded to MCC for the period 2013-2016 inclusive. This will provide a total of 46 major match days at Lord’s during the four year period.
The Board further strengthened the regulations concerning anti-corruption and approved the terms of reference and structure of a dedicated ACCESS unit (Anti-Corruption Commission for Education, Standards and Security)
ECB Chairman Giles Clarke said: “We are pleased to have agreed a range of measures today which we believe will be to the long term benefit of the County game in England and Wales.
“The changes to our domestic structure are the product of an extensive and rigorous consultation process which has encompassed Team England, County players and coaches, County members and other key stakeholders within our domestic game.”