Significant changes to County Cricket calendar in the works at ECB
Wednesday 2 September 2015 22:38, UK
The England and Wales Cricket Board has moved a step closer to a significant revamp of the domestic calendar.
Chief executive Tom Harrison and chairman Colin Graves have undertaken a review of the county game, and the national body has confirmed positive discussions have taken place with the most senior officials from the 18 counties.
A reduction from 16 LV= County Championship fixtures per side to 14 is expected to be the most profound alteration.
The limited overs competitions, both in the Twenty20 and 50-over format, are likely to be played in mid-summer blocks with the ECB keen to have games played in better weather and on better pitches to try and improve the quality and aggression of players coming through the ranks for England.
An ECB spokesperson said on Wednesday: "We've had two very constructive meetings with the first-class counties this week, with the chief executives then chairmen.
"There was rounded discussion on the domestic and international game and we listened to views and valuable insights from across all the first-class counties.
"Today brought a consensus of opinion which allows us to further develop strong plans. These would then be discussed by the ECB board in their next scheduled meeting, at the end of this month."
