India to have more T20I matches under new FTP
BCCI
The new Future Tour Programme (FTP) for the Indian cricket team will have more T20 matches as compared to the previous one. Although there won't be too many changes in the number of Tests and ODIs, India may play three times more T20Is between 2019 and 2023 as compared to the earlier FTP.
In the last two months, Indian players led by captain Virat Kohli have openly criticized the increased workload and Kohli, along with former skipper MS Dhoni, have argued that for the team to perform better and consistently over longer periods, the players needed to have enough break in between commitments. After winning the Test series at home against Sri Lanka on Wednesday, Kohli once again stressed he was desperate for the break.
So, keeping that demand in the eye, the BCCI has decided to spread out the games more evenly and there will be no insignificant series like the ongoing Sri Lankan tour. As reported by ToI, the newly prepared FTP will have 37 Tests, 67 ODIs, and 54 T20s - a total of 158 home and
Ahead of the crucial BCCI SGM in New Delhi on Monday, the new proposal, which mirrors the proposed changes that are going to happen in the BCCI's financial model, will be discussed. However, the new FTP doesn't exactly suggest that the work-load is going to decrease. "You can't play less and earn more. That is never going to happen. Even if the schedule is more evenly distributed, players' workload would be more," a source explained to TOIÂ while adding that the players would have to opt out to manage their workload.Â
The new FTP will comprise the Test and the ODI Leagues, which commence in 2019 and 2020 respectively. In the Test League, every country plays six opponents home or away in a two-year window which will start immediately after the next 2019 World Cup. However, this schedule does not include matches played in the global ICC and Asian Cricket Council tournaments.
