How to measure the health of a game? Is it by the revenue it raises or by the level of skill it shows to the world? Is it the coin or the contest? This is the crossroads at which international cricket has arrived. This month International Cricket Council chairman Jay Shah, Cricket Australia’s Mike Baird and England Cricket Board chairman Richard Thompson are due to meet to discuss splitting Test cricket into two tiers, possibly as soon as 2027. This must not happen.

Twelve nations play Test cricket: Australia, England, India, South Africa, West Indies, New Zealand, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Ireland, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan. Clearly they are not of the same level, and their aspiration to be the best, which necessarily involves pitting themselves against the best, would be manifestly harder to achieve under a two-tier system. The du jour catchphrase of “the best against the best” is shortsighted in the extreme.

Australia’s Beau Webster celebrates hitting the winning runs after Australia won back the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at........

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