ECB reduces domestic Twenty20 games from 16 to 10 in 2012

The County Championship, cricket's oldest and most-maligned competition, would seem to be fighting back. Presented with the chance to reduce the number of four-day fixtures from 16 to 14 from 2012 – an option favoured by the England management and several counties who have capitalised hungrily and effectively on Twenty20 cricket in recent years – the England and Wales Cricket Board has instead chosen to prune both one-day competitions to alleviate the congestion and chaos of the domestic fixture list. From next year, the 18 counties will revert to playing 10 Twenty20 matches, as they did in the successful early years of the competition, before it was expanded by two-thirds last season. In addition, the Clydesdale Bank tournament, in which counties currently play a dozen 40-over matches, will be reduced by at least 33%, although the format of that competition beyond 2012 is still to be finalised, with a possibility it could revert to 50 overs per side. There is no such ambiguity regarding the Championship. "The Board ... agreed to retain the LV County Championship as two divisions of nine teams playing 16 matches a season," the ECB stated baldly – even though that effectively rules out the possibility of bringing the end of the season forward to early September to allow the domestic t20 winners to participate in the Champions League. A vocal minority of the counties are not so keen on the change. Jamie Clifford, the chief executive of Kent – who recently announced a loss of £595,000 for 2010 – said: "I'm disappointed with this outcome. Twenty20 represents the best chance for the county game to generate significant revenues from cricket. At a time when there is considerable financial pressure on all counties, reducing the number of t20 matches seems a great missed opportunity. As a county we look forward to hearing details of the 'package of financial measures' that will address the impact of this decision." Somerset's chairman, Andy Nash, was equally unimpressed by a decision described by his predecessor, Giles Clarke, now the chairman of the ECB, as "to the long-term benefit of the county game in England and Wales". Nash said: "It is perhaps premature to congratulate ourselves on agreeing changes to the domestic structure from 2012. While many Somerset members will undoubtedly welcome the continuation of 16 championship matches, others will regret the loss of several very popular one-day fixtures. "The financial impact of these changes will become clearer in due course. But there is nothing here which entitles those of us entrusted with managing county clubs to conclude that the substantial operating losses being racked up by most counties will be reduced. This should be a prime concern to everyone who loves the game – losses on this scale at county level simply cannot be sustained." Somerset are one of the few counties to have announced a profit for 2010, mainly thanks to their success on and off the field in the t20 competition. However, while they, Essex, Sussex and, to a lesser extent, Kent were still able to fill their compact grounds for eight home fixtures in the expanded t20 last season, a recent survey of the 18 counties revealed that the average ground capacity after the expansion of the competition was 42% – and that only 20% of spectators had attended more than five t20 fixtures. The counties with larger grounds that stage international cricket discovered that less is more, and their arguments for a reduction to five home t20 fixtures per county have won the day. Instead, they will look to the commitment to eight home Championship fixtures per county to reverse the alarming decline in membership figures that most counties have suffered in recent years.