Test cricket

Longest and original form of cricket

This article is about the format for men's international cricket. For the women's format, see Women's Test cricket.

Men's Test Cricket

A Test match between South Africa and England in January 2005. The two men wearing black trousers are the umpires. Test cricket is played in traditional white clothes and usually with a red ball – a pink ball in day/night Tests

Highest governing body| International Cricket Council
First played| 15 March 1877
Characteristics
Team members| Full members
Mixed-sex| No
Type| Cricket format
Equipment|

* Ball,
* Bat,
* Stumps,
* Cricket helmet,
* Thigh guard,
* Batting pads,
* Abdominal guard,
* Gloves,
* etc.

Venue| Cricket stadium
Presence
Country or region| Worldwide
Part of a series on

Cricket
Cricket pictogram
Women's cricket

Forms of cricket

Test cricket

* Men's format
* Women's format

First-class cricket

* Men's format
* Women's format

One Day International

* Men's format
* Women's format

Limited overs (domestic)

* Limited overs cricket
* List A cricket

Twenty20 International

* Men's format
* Women's format

Twenty20 (domestic)

* Men's format
* Women's format

Other forms

* 100-ball cricket
* Backyard cricket
* Bete-ombro
* Blind cricket
* Club cricket
* Crocker
* Deaf cricket
* French cricket
* Indoor cricket
* UK variant
* Kilikiti
* Plaquita
* Single wicket
* Softball cricket
* T10 cricket
* Tape ball cricket
* Tennis ball cricket
* Vigoro
* Village cricket

International competitions

* ICC World Test Championship
* ICC Men's Test Team Rankings
* Cricket World Cup
* Women's Cricket World Cup
* Men's T20 World Cup
* Women's T20 World Cup
* ICC Champions Trophy
* ICC Cricket World Cup League 2
* ICC Cricket World Cup Challenge League
* Euro T20 Slam
* Asia Cup
* World Cricket League Africa Region
* Cricket at the Summer Olympics
* Cricket at the African Games
* Cricket at the Asian Games
* Cricket at the Commonwealth Games
* Cricket at the Pacific Games
* Cricket at the South Asian Games

History of cricket

* History of cricket to 1725
* History of English cricket (1726–1750)
* History of English cricket (1751–1775)
* History of English cricket (1776–1800)
* History of English cricket (1801–1825)
* History of women's cricket

Records

* v
* t
* e

Test Cricket is a format of the sport of cricket, considered the game’s most prestigious and traditional form. Often referred to as the "ultimate test" of a cricketer's skill, endurance, and temperament, it is a format of international cricket where two teams in white clothing, each representing a country, compete over a match that can last up to five days. It consists of four innings (two per team), with a minimum of ninety overs scheduled to be bowled per day, making it the sport with the longest playing time. A team wins the match by outscoring the opposition in the batting or bowl out in bowling, otherwise the match ends in a draw.

It is contested by 12 teams which are the full-members of the International Cricket Council (ICC). The term "test match" was originally coined in 1861–62 but in a different context.[1] Test cricket did not become an officially recognised format until the 1890s, but many international matches since 1877 have been retrospectively awarded Test status. The first such match took place at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in March 1877 between teams which were then known as a Combined Australian XI and James Lillywhite's XI, the latter a team of visiting English professionals. Matches between Australia and England were first called "test matches" in 1892. The first definitive list of retrospective Tests was written by South Australian journalist Clarence P. Moody two years later and, by the end of the century, had gained acceptance.

Day/night Tests were permitted by the ICC in 2012 and the first day/night match was between Australia and New Zealand at the Adelaide Oval in November 2015.

The ICC World Test Championship is the international championship of Test cricket. It is a league competition run by the ICC, with its inaugural season starting in 2019.[2][3] In line with the ICC's goal of having one pinnacle tournament for each of the three formats of international cricket, it is the premier championship for Test cricket.[4]

## Early history

[edit]

Main articles: History of cricket, History of Test cricket from 1877 to 1883, History of Test cricket from 1884 to 1889, and History of Test cricket from 1890 to 1900

### Growth of international cricket

[edit]

Teams designated as "England" or "All England" began to play in the 18th century, but these teams were not truly representative. Early international cricket was disrupted by the French Revolution and the American Civil War. The earliest international cricket match was between the United States and Canada, on 24 and 26 September 1844 (bad weather prevented play on the 25th).[5] Overseas tours by national English teams began in 1859 with visits to North America, Australia and New Zealand. The 1868 Australian Aboriginals were the first organised overseas team to tour England.

The earliest published photo of the Ashes urn, from The Illustrated London News, 1921

Two rival English tours of Australia were proposed in the early months of 1877, with James Lillywhite campaigning for a professional tour and Fred Grace for an amateur one. Grace's tour fell through and it was Lillywhite's team that toured New Zealand and Australia in 1876–77. Two matches against a combined Australian XI were later classified as the first official Test matches. The first match was won by Australia, by 45 runs and the second by England. After reciprocal tours established a pattern of international cricket, The Ashes was established as a competition during the Australian tour of England in 1882. A surprise victory for Australia inspired a mock obituary of English cricket to be published in the Sporting Times the following day: the phrase "The body shall be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia" prompted the subsequent creation of the Ashes urn.

The series of 1884–85 was the first to be held over five matches: England player Alfred Shaw, writing in 1901, considered the side to be "the best ever to have left England". South Africa became the third team to play Test cricket in 1888–89, when they hosted a tour by an under-strength England side. Australia, England and South Africa were the only countries playing Test cricket before World War I.

### Terminology

[edit]

The term "test match" was coined during the English tour of Australia in 1861–62 but in a different context. It meant that the English team was testing itself against each of the Australian colonies.[1] Following Lillywhite's tour, Australian teams reciprocated, beginning with Dave Gregory's team in 1878. By the beginning of 1892, eight English teams had visited Australia and seven Australian teams had visited England. In its issue of 25 February 1892, Cricket: A Weekly Record of the Game revived the term "test match" and freely applied it to the three international matches which had just been played in Australia by Lord Sheffield's XI, starting with the match at the MCG which was billed as Lord Sheffield's Team v Combined Australia. The report began: "There was no little appropriateness in fixing the first of the three great test matches for January 1".[6]

### Clarence P. Moody

[edit]

The first list of matches considered to be "Tests" was conceived and published by South Australian journalist Clarence P. Moody in his 1894 book, Australian Cricket and Cricketers, 1856 to 1893–94. Moody's proposal was well received by Charles W. Alcock, editor of Cricket in England and his list of 39 matches was reproduced in the 28 December 1894 issue as part of an article entitled "The First Test Match". The list begins with the MCG match played 15–17 March 1877 and ends with the recent match at the Association Ground, Sydney played 14–20 December 1894.[7] All 39 were retrospectively recognised as Test matches, as was the unlisted 1890 Old Trafford match that was abandoned without a ball being bowled. No South African matches were included in Moody's list but three against England were also given retrospective Test status.[8] Moody became a newspaper editor and founded the Adelaide Sunday Mail in 1912.[9]

## Test status

[edit]

Test matches are the highest level of cricket, played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council. As of June 2017[update], twelve national teams have Test status, the most recently promoted being Afghanistan and Ireland on 22 June 2017.[10]

### Teams with Test status

[edit]

Test status is conferred upon a country or group of countries by the ICC. There are currently twelve men's teams that have been granted this status: international teams that do not have Test status can play first-class cricket in the ICC Intercontinental Cup, under conditions which are similar to Tests.

The teams with Test status (with the date of each team's Test debut) are:

1. Australia (15 March 1877)
2. England (15 March 1877)
3. South Africa (12 March 1889)
4. West Indies (23 June 1928)
5. New Zealand (10 January 1930)
6. India (25 June 1932)
7. Pakistan (16 October 1952)
8. Sri Lanka (17 February 1982)
9. Zimbabwe (18 October 1992)
10. Bangladesh (10 November 2000)
11. Ireland (11 May 2018)
12. Afghanistan (14 June 2018)

Nine of these teams represent independent sovereign nations: the England cricket team represents the constituent countries of England and Wales, the West Indies is a combined team from fifteen Caribbean nations and territories, and Ireland represents both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Following the D'Oliveira affair in 1969, South Africa was suspended from all forms of cricket from 1970 until the end of the apartheid regime in 1991.

Zimbabwe's Test status was voluntarily suspended in 2006 because of very poor performances, but its Test status was reinstated in August 2011.[11]

The ICC has made several proposals to reform the system of granting Test status, including having two tiers with promotion and relegation,[12][13][14][15][16][17][18] or a play-off between the winners of the ICC Intercontinental Cup and the team with the lowest Test ranking.[19] These proposals have not been successful as of 2024.

### Statistics

[edit]

Main article: List of Test cricket records

For statistical purposes, Tests are considered to be a subset of first-class cricket. Performances in first-class matches count towards only the first-class statistical record, but performances in Test matches count towards both the Test statistics and the first-class statistics.

Statisticians have developed criteria to determine which matches count as Tests if they were played before the formal definition of Test status. There have been exceptional circumstances including the simultaneous England touring sides of 1891–92 (in Australia and South Africa) and 1929–30 (in the West Indies and New Zealand), all of whose international matches are deemed to have Test status.

In 1970, a series of five "Test matches" was played in England between England and a Rest of the World XI: these matches, originally scheduled between England and South Africa, were amended after South Africa was suspended from international cricket due to their government's apartheid policies. Although initially given Test status and included as Test matches in some record books, including Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, this was later withdrawn, and a principle was established that official Test matches can only be between nations (the geographically and demographically small countries of the West Indies have, since 1928, fielded a coalition side).

Despite this principle, in 2005, the ICC ruled that the six-day Super Series match that took place that October between Australia and a World XI was an official Test match: some cricket writers and statisticians, including Bill Frindall, have ignored the ICC's ruling and exclude this match from their records.

The series of "Test matches" played in Australia between Australia and a World XI in 1971–72, and the commercial "Supertests" organised by Kerry Packer as part of his World Series Cricket enterprise played between "WSC Australia", "WSC World XI" and "WSC West Indies" from 1977 to 1979, have never been regarded as official Test matches as of 2021.

## Conduct of the game

[edit]

### Playing time

[edit]

See also: Playing time (cricket)

A standard day of Test cricket consists of three sessions of two hours each, the break between sessions being 40 minutes for lunch and 20 minutes for tea. However, the times of sessions and intervals may be altered in certain circumstances: if bad weather or a change of innings occurs close to a scheduled break, the break may be taken immediately; if there has been a loss of playing time, for example because of bad weather, the session times may be adjusted to make up the lost time; if the batting side is nine wickets down at the scheduled tea break, then the interval may be delayed until either 30 minutes has elapsed or the team is all out;[20] the final session may be extended by up to 30 minutes if 90 or more overs have not been bowled in that day's play (subject to any reduction for adverse weather);[21] the final session may be extended by 30 minutes (except on the 5th day) if the umpires believe the result can be decided within that time.[22]

Today, Test matches are scheduled to be played across five consecutive days. However, in the early days of Test cricket, matches were played for three or four days. England hosted Ireland at Lord's on 1st June 2023 for a four-day test.[23] There were also frequent six-day tests until the 1970s.[24]

Four-day Test matches were last played in 1973, between New Zealand and Pakistan.[25] Until the 1980s, it was usual to include a 'rest day,' often a Sunday. There have also been 'Timeless Tests', which have no predetermined maximum time. In 2005, Australia played a match scheduled for six days against a World XI, which the ICC sanctioned as an official Test match, though the match reached a conclusion on the fourth day. In October 2017, the ICC approved a request for a four-day Test match, between South Africa and Zimbabwe, which started on 26 December 2017 and ended on the second day, 27 December.[26] The ICC trialed the four-day Test format until the 2019 Cricket World Cup.[27] In December 2019, Cricket Australia were considering playing four-day Tests, subject to consensus with other Test nations.[28] Later the same month, the ICC considered the possibility of making four-day Test matches mandatory for the ICC World Test Championship from 2023.[29]

There have been attempts by the ICC, the sport's governing body, to introduce day-night Test matches.[30] In 2012, the International Cricket Council passed playing conditions that allowed for the staging of day-night Test matches.[31] The first day-night Test took place during New Zealand's tour to Australia in November 2015.[32]

### Play

[edit]

Further information: Cricket § Laws and gameplay

Test cricket is played in innings (the word denotes both the singular and the plural). In each innings, one team bats and the other bowls (or fields). Ordinarily four innings are played in a Test match, and each team bats twice and bowls twice. Before the start of play on the first day, the two team captains and the match referee toss a coin; the captain who wins the toss decides whether his team will bat or bowl first.

In the following scenarios, the team that bats first is referred to as Team A and their opponents as Team B.

Usually the teams will alternate at the completion of each innings. Thus, Team A will bat (and Team B will bowl) until its innings ends, and then Team B will bat and Team A will bowl. When Team B's innings ends, Team A begin their second innings, and this is followed by Team B's second innings. The winning team is the one that scores more runs in their two innings.

A team's innings ends in one of the following ways:[33]

* The team is "all out". This typically occurs when a team has lost ten wickets (ten of the eleven batters having been dismissed) and are "bowled out". It may occasionally occur with the loss of fewer wickets if one or more batters are unavailable to bat (through injury, for example).
* The team's captain declares the innings closed, usually because they believe they have enough runs. A declaration before the innings starts is called an innings forfeiture.
* The team batting fourth score the required number of runs to win.
* The prescribed time for the match expires.

If, at the completion of Team B's first innings, Team A leads by at least 200 runs, the captain of Team A may (but is not required to) order Team B to have their second innings next. This is called enforcing the follow-on.[34] In this case, the usual order of the third and fourth innings is reversed: Team A will bat in the fourth innings. It is rare for a team forced to follow-on to win the match. In Test cricket it has only happened four times, although over 285 follow-ons have been enforced. Australia was the losing team on three occasions, having lost twice to England, in 1894 and in 1981, and once to India in 2001.[35] Most recently, on February 24, 2023, England lost to New Zealand by one run after enforcing the follow-on.[36]

If the whole of the first day's play of a Test match has been lost because of bad weather or other reasons like bad light, then Team A may enforce the follow-on if Team B's first innings total is 150 or more fewer than Team A's. During the 2nd Test between England and New Zealand at Headingley in 2013, England batted first after the first day was lost because of rain.[37] New Zealand, batting second, scored 180 runs fewer than England, meaning England could have enforced the follow-on, though chose not to. This is similar to four-day first-class cricket, where the follow-on can be enforced if the difference is 150 runs or more. If the Test is two days or fewer then the "follow-on" value is 100 runs.

After 80 overs, the captain of the bowling side may take a new ball, although this is not required.[38] The captain will usually take the new ball: being harder and smoother than an old ball, a new ball generally favours faster bowlers who can make it bounce more variably. The roughened, softer surface of an old ball can be more conducive to spin bowlers, or those using reverse swing. The captain may delay the decision to take the new ball if he wishes to continue with his spinners (because the pitch favours spin). After a new ball has been taken, should an innings last a further 80 overs, then the captain will have the option to take another new ball.

A Test match will produce a result by means of one of six scenarios:

* All four innings are complete. The team batting fourth are all out before overtaking the other team, usually before matching the other team's score. The team that batted third are the winners by a margin equal to the difference in the aggregate runs scored by the two teams (for example, "Team A won by 95 runs"). Very rarely (in over 2,000 Test matches played, it has only happened twice) the scores can end level, resulting in a tie.
* The team batting in the fourth innings overtakes the opposing team's run total. The match ends, and the team batting fourth is the winner by a margin equal to the number of wickets still to fall in the innings (for example, "Team B won by five wickets").
* The third innings concludes with the team that batted twice still trailing the team that batted once. The match ends without playing a fourth innings. The team that batted only once is the winner by a margin equal to "an innings" plus the difference in aggregate run totals of the teams (for example, "Team A won by an innings and 26 runs").
* Time for the match expires without a result being reached. This usually occurs at the end of the last day of the match. The result is a draw: there is no winner, no matter how superior the position of one of the sides. Rain causing a loss of playing time is a common factor in drawn matches, although matches may be drawn even without interference from the weather: usually as a result of poor time management or an intentional effort on the part of one team to avoid losing.
* The match is abandoned because the ground is declared unfit for play. This has occurred three times, resulting each time in a draw being declared: England v Australia at Headingley, Leeds, 1975 (vandalism);[39] West Indies v England at Sabina Park, Kingston, Jamaica, 1998 (dangerous ground);[40] West Indies v England at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua, 2009 (dangerous ground).[41]
* The match is awarded through a forfeiture. If a team refuses to take the field of play, the umpires may award the match to the opposing team.[42] This has only happened once in Test cricket, in the 2006 fourth Test between England and Pakistan.[43][44]

### Clothing and equipment

[edit]

Main article: Cricket clothing and equipment

Test cricketers playing in their whites.

Traditionally cricketers play in all-white kit. Unlike in limited overs cricket, this remains the case in Test cricket, as mandated by the ICC Clothing and Equipment Regulations.[45]

## Competitions

[edit]

### Tours

[edit]

Main page: Category:International cricket tours

Test cricket is almost always played as a series of matches between two countries, with all matches in the series taking place in the same country (the host). Often there is a perpetual trophy that is awarded to the winner, the most famous of which is the Ashes contested between England and Australia. There have been two exceptions to the bilateral nature of Test cricket: the 1912 Triangular Tournament, a three-way competition between England, Australia and South Africa (hosted by England), and the Asian Test Championship, an event held in 1998–99 and 2001–02.

The number of matches in Test series has varied from one to seven.[46] Up until the early 1990s,[47] Test series between international teams were organised between the two national cricket organisations with umpires provided by the home team. With the entry of more countries into Test cricket, and a wish by the ICC to maintain public interest in Tests in the face of the popularity of One Day International cricket, a rotation system was introduced that sees all ten Test teams playing each other over a six-year cycle, and an official ranking system (with a trophy held by the highest-ranked team). In this system, umpires are provided by the ICC. An elite panel of eleven umpires was maintained since 2002, and the panel is supplemented by an additional International Panel that includes three umpires named by each Test-playing country. The elite umpires officiate almost all Test matches, though usually not Tests involving their home country.

#### Perpetual trophies

[edit]

Several pairs of Test teams have established perpetual trophies which are competed for whenever teams play each other in Test series. The current ones are:

Name of trophy | Team 1 | Team 2 | First contested | Latest contested

|
|
|
|

The Ashes |  Australia |  England | 1882–83 | 2023
Anthony de Mello Trophy[A] |  England |  India | 1951–52[48] | 2023–24
Pataudi Trophy[A] |  England |  India | 2007 | 2021-22
Frank Worrell Trophy |  Australia |  West Indies | 1960–61 | 2023-24
Richards–Botham Trophy[B] |  England |  West Indies | 2021–22 | 2024
Trans-Tasman Trophy |  Australia |  New Zealand | 1985–86 | 2023–24
Border–Gavaskar Trophy |  Australia |  India | 1996–97 | 2024-25
Southern Cross Trophy |  Australia |  Zimbabwe | 1999–2000[49] | 2003–04
Sir Vivian Richards Trophy |  South Africa |  West Indies | 1998-99[50] | 2024
Clive Lloyd Trophy |  West Indies |  Zimbabwe | 2001[51] | 2022-23
Basil D'Oliveira Trophy |  England |  South Africa | 2004–05 | 2022
Warne–Muralitharan Trophy |  Australia |  Sri Lanka | 2007–08 | 2024-25
The Freedom Trophy |  India |  South Africa | 2015–16 | 2023–24
Sobers–Tissera Trophy |  Sri Lanka |  West Indies | 2015–16 | 2021–22
Ganguly-Durjoy Trophy |  India |  Bangladesh | 2016–17 | 2024–25
Benaud–Qadir Trophy |  Australia |  Pakistan | 2021–22[52] | 2023–24
Tangiwai Shield |  New Zealand |  South Africa | 2023-24 | 2023-24
Crowe–Thorpe Trophy |  England |  New Zealand | 2024-25 | 2024-25
A The Anthony de Mello Trophy is awarded for the India–England test series played in India, whilst the Pataudi Trophy is for the series played in England.

B The Richards-Botham Trophy, first played for in 2021–22, replaced the Wisden Trophy, which was discontinued after 2020.

#### Number of perpetual trophies contested by each team

[edit]

Team  | No. of Trophies

|

Australia | 7
England | 5
West Indies
India | 4
South Africa
Sri Lanka | 2
Zimbabwe
New Zealand
Pakistan | 1

### International Test rankings

[edit]

Main article: ICC Men's Test Team Rankings

The twelve Test-playing nations are currently ranked as follows:

ICC Men's Test Team Rankings

* v
* t
* e

Team | Matches | Points | Rating

|
|
|

Australia | 39 | 4,942 | 127
South Africa | 33 | 3,754 | 114
India | 39 | 4,248 | 109
England | 46 | 4,815 | 105
New Zealand | 33 | 3,216 | 97
Sri Lanka | 31 | 2,664 | 86
Pakistan | 33 | 2,648 | 80
West Indies | 32 | 2,427 | 76
Bangladesh | 29 | 1,884 | 65
Ireland | 6 | 181 | 30
Afghanistan | 6 | 112 | 19
Zimbabwe | 7 | 0 | 0
Source: ICC Men's Test Team Rankings, 10 February 2025
See points calculations for more details.

### World Test Championship

[edit]

Main article: ICC World Test Championship

After years of delays since proposals began in 2009, a league competition for Test cricket was held in 2019–2021. Arranged as a bilateral series in various countries with one team as host and another team as visitor. The length of each series varies between 2 and 5 matches. Ireland, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan are not taking part in this competition, but instead play a program of Test matches with each other and other teams during the same period.

#### Final results

[edit]

Year  | Final statistics  | Individual tournament statistics

|
|

Venue  | Winner  | Winning
margin  | Runner-up  | Player of
the match  | Most runs  | Highest score  | Most centuries  | Most wickets  | Most five-wicket hauls
2021 |  Rose Bowl, Southampton |  New Zealand | 8 wickets[53] |  India | Kyle Jamieson | Marnus Labuschagne, 1675[54] | David Warner, 335*[55] | Marnus Labuschagne, 5[56] | Ravichandran Ashwin, 71[57] | Kyle Jamieson, 5[58]
2023 |  The Oval, London  |  Australia | 209 runs  |  India | Travis Head[59] | Joe Root, 1915[59] | Tom Latham, 252[59] | Joe Root, 8[59] | Nathan Lyon, 88[59] | Nathan Lyon, 5[59]

## Popularity

[edit]

Supporters of Test cricket, including Adam Gilchrist, argue that it is "the ultimate test of a player's and team's ability".[60] However, it has been suggested that Test cricket may be losing popularity, particularly in the face of competition from short form cricket.[61] Day/night Test matches have been suggested as one way to address this problem.[62] The suggested fall in popularity has been disputed, with a Marylebone Cricket Club poll showing that 86% of all cricket fans support Test cricket, more than any other format.[63]

## See also

[edit]

* Cricket portal

* List of Test cricket grounds
* List of Test cricket records
* Lists of Test cricketers
* List of cricketers who have played 100 Tests
* One Day International
* Twenty20 International

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Bowen, Rowland (1970). Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development. London: Eyre & Spottiswoode. p. 99\. ISBN 978-04-13278-60-9.
2. ^ "Schedule for inaugural World Test Championship announced". International Cricket Council.
3. ^ Ramsey, Andrew (20 June 2018). "Aussies to host Afghans as part of new schedule". cricket.com.au.
4. ^ "Test Championship to replace Champions Trophy". ESPNcricinfo. 29 June 2013.
5. ^ United States of America v Canada 1844 Archived 29 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine. ESPNcricinfo.
6. ^ "Tenth Match – Lord Sheffield's Team v Combined Australia" Archived 8 September 2022 at the Wayback Machine Cricket, issue 291, 25 February 1892, p. 27.
7. ^ "The First Test Match" Archived 8 September 2022 at the Wayback Machine Cricket, issue 379, 28 December 1894, pp. 463–464.
8. ^ "List of Test Matches". CricketArchive. Archived from the original on 9 September 2022. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
9. ^ "Game on: a rich sporting history" Archived 8 September 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Hilferty, Tim: The Advertiser. 5 May 2012.
10. ^ "Ireland & Afghanistan awarded Test status by International Cricket Council". BBC News. 22 June 2017. Archived from the original on 22 June 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
11. ^ Zimbabwe Cricket Side Resume International Test Play After Six-Year Break Archived 31 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine – Voice of America.
12. ^ "NZC 'big supporter' of two-tier Test system, says CEO". ESPNcricinfo. 18 July 2016. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
13. ^ Della Penna, Peter (4 September 2016). "Afghanistan ready to play Tests – ACB chief executive". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 27 July 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
14. ^ Isam, Mohammad (27 June 2016). "BCB vice-president against two-tier Test system". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 27 May 2021. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
15. ^ Della Penna, Peter (31 August 2016). "Four-day Tests, two-tier system not the answer – Thakur". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
16. ^ Dobell, George (1 June 2016). "ICC planning two Test divisions amid major overhaul". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
17. ^ Gollapudi, Nagraj (7 September 2016). "Two-tier proposal shelved at ICC meeting". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 16 April 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
18. ^ Brettig, Daniel. "Baseball-style conference structure proposed for Tests". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 24 July 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
19. ^ "Ireland and Scotland to get Test chance as ICC approves play-off". BBC Sport. BBC. 10 April 2014. Archived from the original on 8 November 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
20. ^ "The Laws of Cricket – Law 15.8". Lords.org. Archived from the original on 24 November 2012. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
21. ^ "ICC Standard Test match Playing Conditions ("Playing Conditions") cl 16.1.1" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 January 2012. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
22. ^ "Playing Conditions cl 16.2" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 January 2012. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
23. ^ "Ireland tour of England". ESPNcricinfo. 1 June 2023. Archived from the original on 31 May 2023. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
24. ^ "Test matches | Team records | Longest matches (by days)". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 29 December 2024.
25. ^ "Cremer senses opportunity in shorter contest". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 29 May 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
26. ^ "Test, ODI leagues approved by ICC Board". ESPNcricinfo. 13 October 2017. Archived from the original on 16 May 2021. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
27. ^ "South Africa to play Zimbabwe in inaugural four-day Test". ESPNcricinfo. 13 October 2017. Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
28. ^ "Australian cricket board to 'seriously consider' four-day Test matches". The National. 28 December 2019. Archived from the original on 28 December 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
29. ^ "ICC to consider mandatory four-day Tests". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 25 January 2021. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
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31. ^ "ICC paves way for Day-Night Tests". Wisden India. 29 October 2012. Archived from the original on 30 June 2015. Retrieved 30 October 2012.
32. ^ "First day-night Test for Adelaide Oval". ESPNcricinfo. 29 June 2015. Archived from the original on 8 May 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2015.
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34. ^ "Law 14 – The follow-on". MCC. Archived from the original on 22 June 2018. Retrieved 29 September 2017.
35. ^ "Australia has lost 3 Times by Enforcing Follow-On". ScoreWaves. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
36. ^ "Matches where Follow-On Available | Lost by Side Enforcing Follow-On". Howstat.com. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
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### Bibliography

[edit]

* Ground Rules – A Celebration of Test Cricket, Barney Spender & David Gower, Dakini Books Ltd (Nov 2003), ISBN 0-9537032-6-6
* The Wisden Book of Test Cricket, Sir Donald Bradman (Foreword), Bill Frindall (Editor), Headline Book Publishing (1995), ISBN 0-7472-1118-3
* Marylebone Cricket Club (2003), The Laws of Cricket. Retrieved 2009-03-30.
* International Cricket Council (2023), Standard Test Match Playing Conditions. Retrieved 2024-03-04.

## External links

[edit]

* Origin of the name "Test"
* USA v Canada – The oldest international sporting fixture

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