Melbourne: The ICC is set to deliberate upon former New Zealand captain and MCC member Martin Crowe's proposal of organising an annual knock-out Test Championship to revive spectators' interest in the longer version of the game in a meeting in November.
According to a report in the 'Sydney Morning Herald', the proposal has already been sent to the game's governing body.
"If we don't do something soon then the bottom teams in particular will wilt away and the bottom will fall out of the pinnacle format of the game. Test cricket needs a meaning and a new motivation among all these other shorter version comps that are scheduled every year. It needs a Test champion, annually," Crowe told the newspaper.
The former Kiwi skipper said Test matches would eventually become day-night affairs.
"If hosting quarter-finals is shared, then you don't have an issue with sharing rights. This is for the top eight teams only, which would exclude Bangladesh in the next stage. But if they get up to top eight in next stage then in they go.
"For those who make the semis and finals then the pie is shared with them. Obviously, [the] ECB would demand a hosting fee for the final and semis - and why not? Or the semis can be played earlier if the two teams involved want to arrange it," he said.
The MCC World Cricket Committee also includes Steve Waugh, Anil Kumble, Michael Atherton, Rahul Dravid and Andy Flower.