Durham propose radical county cricket shake-up

Durham have proposed a radical shake-up of English domestic cricket, including a rugby-style Grand Final to decide the County Championship.

The county has addressed members with a change to the domestic structure and schedule in a bid to reduce player fatigue.

The proposal, which Durham said has been developed along with other counties and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), suggests the current two-division championship should be scrapped.

It would be replaced by two upper divisions of six teams each, and a lower division of six teams.

The Grand Final format is already in use in Australia, New Zealand, India and South Africa.

The lower conference sides would be competing for two promotion places, with one county from each upper conference being relegated to accommodate them.

Durham chairman Phil Collins said in a statement on the club website: “We support the 18-county model but, believe the current 10/8 division structure lacks meaningful fixtures as the season progresses.

“The current structure produces a plethora of games in both divisions that do not have any meaning; teams involved in mid table games in the last third of the season onwards do not have any jeopardy… the teams involved cannot get into a title or promotion race and are safe from relegation.

“We don’t believe this produces the intensity of cricket that our great game needs and is something that both players and fans constantly comment on to us.”

The proposal also suggests the T20 Blast should be reduced in size and comprise three groups of six teams each, with the entire competition played before The Hundred begins.

The county said the plans have been drawn up following a Professional Cricketers’ Association survey, which found that 83% of players think the current schedule “harms physical wellbeing”, 72% saying it “hinders high performance”, and over two-thirds claiming mental health is affected by the intensity.

The statement added that other counties have proposed alternative structures, including an 8/10 and a 10/8 division split.

Collins said the idea will be discussed at a members forum on 30 July.

“These proposals aim to reduce workload, enhance performance, and offer more compelling cricket. We believe they represent the best way forward,” he added.