James Sutherland reveals India-Australia could be one of the last

Cricket Australia (CA) Chief Executive James Sutherland feels that the ongoing series against India would be the last of the five-match series that the two teams would play in the ODI format to accommodate a global league. According to the reports on CA’s website, Sutherland has confirmed that if the proposed introduction of a 13-team ODI league would go ahead.

The league would see the total of 13 teams competing for the trophy. Further, in the future, we would see bilateral ties between the two sides limited to three ODIs. However, he also confirmed that the two cricketing boards would be free to chalk out their bilateral programs.

The One-Day League

“They might intersperse them with some Twenty20 matches as well, but I don’t think you’ll see many five-match one-day series … if the plans at ICC level unfold for a Test championship and a one-day league.” Sutherland was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au.

The league is proposed to have six home and away matches, with the 13 countries getting a chance to play the others at home which is not quite the same we see in the bilateral ties.

“The contemplation around one-day cricket in the future is that each country hosts six one-day matches and plays six away matches as part of that league, so that’s likely going to be the limits of it,” added Sutherland.

Talks of a World Test Championship going around

Beside the 13-nation tournament, he also added that there might be a time in the future where we would see a World Test Championship between two sides. It would be pretty similar to the series played between Australia and Bangladesh. The stakes of the tour will be higher if it is added onto the proposed Championship.

“What amplifies through that is third-party interest, so other countries, by extension, would have an interest in that series because it had a bearing on where others fitted on the ladder,” he further stated.

“I think that’s a real positive because there are consequences that come with winning and losing that are far greater than just the bilateral series result as it stands,” Sutherland concluded.