International Cricket Council's Cricket committee decided, in a meeting that concluded yesterday, to not do away with the tradition of Toss for the Test matches that will be played during the World Test Championship that starts from 2019.

Over the last few years, pitches offering more than the adequate help to one kind of skill and hence favouring the home side to more than an acceptable level has been seen. This was the main concern of the committee headed by the great Anil Kumble. There was the idea of letting the visiting team decide what they want to do, hence forcing the home team to prepare pitches which can last all five days and produce good quality cricket, where the team that plays better cricket wins.

The ICC issued a statement after the meeting, where it was written, “The Committee discussed whether the toss should be automatically awarded to the visiting team but felt that it was an integral part of Test cricket which forms part of the narrative of the game,”

“However, in acknowledging that the preparation of Test pitches that could provide a risk to the competitiveness of the ICC World Test Championship, the Committee urged members to continue to focus on the delivery of pitches that provide a better balance between bat and ball in line with ICC regulations.”

At an early stage as of now, but the committee recommended how the points table of the biggest event for Test cricket would look like.

“Based on the principle of simplicity and every match needing to count, the committee recommended that points should only be awarded for each match and not a series win. As part of this, it was proposed that there was a draw-win ratio of 0.33:1, so a draw gives each team a third of the available points.”

The panel proposed a rest day for the championship final, to be staged at Lord’s in 2023, to compensate for any time lost due to bad weather. The panel also wants the ICC to lay down stricter rules for Ball-Tampering and poor behaviour by players on the field.