DUBAI: International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Wednesday, its Future Tours Programme (FTP) for a five-year period (2018-2023) which includes the World Test Championship and a 13-team ODI league.
Test championship, the premier offering of this new FTP, will involve nine teams who would contest for the top spot playing three home and three away series over two two-year cycles, with the first cycle beginning in 2019. The final of this cycle is most likely to be held at the Lord’s in July 2021.
According to the new FTP, ICC preserved the five-match Ashes Test series under the new Test championship cycle with Australia slated to tour England in 2019 and the return series to be played in 2021-22. The 13-team ODI league will see the inclusion of the winners of the World Cricket League Championship, Netherlands, playing alongside the twelve Test playing nations. The league limits every series to a three-match fixture, beginning in 2020 and will run up to 2022.
Also, not all matches will impact the Test Championship and the ODI league. In the year preceding the 50-over World Cup, the ODI league will be suspended during which teams can play more than three matches in a series, e.g the ongoing five-match ODI series between England and Australia, as a bilateral series. The top eight teams in the league will gain automatic qualification to the main event while the other spots will be decided through the World Cup Qualifiers.
FTP Test Championship schedule: Pakistan: Oct 2019: Two home Tests against Sri Lanka
Nov-Dec 2019: Two away Tests in Australia
Jan-Feb 2020: Two home Tests against Bangladesh
Jul-Aug 2020: Three away Tests in England
Dec 2020: Two away Tests in New Zealand
Jan-Feb 2021: Two home Tests against South Africa
India: Jul-Aug 2019: Two away Tests in West Indies
Oct-Nov 2019: Three home Tests against South Africa
Nov 2019: Two home Tests against Bangladesh
Feb 2020: Two away Tests in New Zealand
December 2020: Four away Tests in Australia
Jan-Feb 2021: Five home Tests against England
South Africa: October 2019: Three away Tests in India
Dec 2019-Jan 2020 - Four home Tests against England
Jul-Aug 2020: Two away Tests in West Indies
Jan 2021: Two home Tests against Sri Lanka
Jan-Feb 2021: Two away Tests against Pakistan
Feb-Mar 2021: Three home Tests against Australia
Australia: July-Aug-Sept 2019: Five Ashes Tests away in England
Nov 2019: Two home Tests against Pakistan
Dec 2019-Jan 2020: Three home Tests against New Zealand
Feb 2020: Two away Tests against Bangladesh
Nov-December 2020: Four home Tests against India
Feb-March 2021: Three away Tests against South Africa
New Zealand: July-Aug 2019: Two away Tests in Sri Lanka
Dec 2019-Jan 2020: Three away Tests in Australia
Feb 2020: Two home Tests against India
Aug-Sept 2020: Two away Tests in Bangladesh
Nov-Dec 2020: Three home Tests against Windies
Dec 2020: Two home Tests against Pakistan
England: July-Aug 2019: Five Ashes Tests at home against Australia
Dec 2019-Jan 2020: Four away Tests in South Africa
Mar 2020: Two away Tests in Sri Lanka
Jun-July 2020: Three home Tests against Windies
Jul-Aug 2020: Three home Tests against Pakistan
Jan-Feb 2021: Five away Tests in India
Sri Lanka: July-Aug 2019: Two home Tests against New Zealand
Oct 2019: Two away Tests against Pakistan
Mar-Apr 2020: Two home Tests against England
Jul-Aug 2020: Three home Tests against Bangladesh
Jan 2021: Two away Tests in South Africa
Feb-Mar 2021: Two away Tests in West Indies
Bangladesh: Nov 2019: Two away Tests in India
Jan-Feb 2020: Two away Tests in Pakistan
Feb 2020: Two home Tests against Australia
Jul-Aug 2020: Three away Tests in Sri Lanka
Aug-Sept 2020: Two home Tests against New Zealand
Jan-Feb 2021: Three home Tests against Windies
West Indies: July-Aug 2019: Two home Tests against India
Jun-Jul 2020: Three away Tests in England
Jul-Aug 2020: Two home Tests against South Africa
Nov-Dec 2020: Three away Tests in New Zealand
Jan-Feb 2021: Three away Tests in Bangladesh
Feb-Mar 2021: Two home Tests in Sri Lanka.
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