Beyond winning the World Test Championship WTC, South Africas presence in the final should serve as a reminder for the International Cricket Council ICC to extend support for the format beyond England, India and Australia, says Proteas head coach Shukri Conrad.
Citing results over the big three recently, Conrad explained that the Test format remained relevant, but needed the ICC to provide honest backing so that the schedule wasnt dominated by the wealthiest nations.
NZ won 3-0 in India, Sri Lanka won a Test in England, West Indies won a Test in Australia. Are they really the big three?, Conrad wondered. I think we need strong Test cricket. Test cricket is the lifeblood of cricket around the world, The other formats rely on Test cricket, it is the shop window for a lot of players who want to make it in the other formats.
I reckon the ICC needs to take it in hand, and ensure that the global Test game is looked after rather than the whims and fancies of a few nations.
The criticism the Proteas faced from the likes of Michael Vaughan a former England captain and Darren Lehmann the former Australian player and later head coach for qualifying for the WTC final, indicated not only a lack of understanding of the WTC format, but how little regard was given to teams outside the big three.