Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has come up with a radical suggestion, saying bilateral T20I series between countries should be abolished to create a bigger window for franchise tournaments like the Indian Premier League (IPL).

According to Shastri, international matches in the shortest format should be restricted to World Cups only.

See Also: Twitterati get nostalgic as Ravi Shastri hosted IPL 15 closing ceremony

"Yes, absolutely, there's too much of bilateral stuff going on in T20 cricket," Shastri said on ESPNcricinfo.

Shastri, who served India as head coach from 2017 to 2021, claimed that "no one remembers" bilateral tournaments. He wants cricket to follow the football route, where club competitions are more common and international matches are largely played in marquee tournaments like the World Cup.

"I've said that, even when I was the coach of India, I could see it happening in front of my eyes. It should go the football way, where, in T20 cricket, you just play the World Cup. Bilateral tournaments - no one remembers," Shastri stated.

"I don't remember a single game in the last six-seven years as coach of India, barring the World Cup. A team wins the World Cup, they will remember it. Unfortunately, we didn't, so I don't remember that either," he added.

"Where I am coming from is: you play franchise cricket around the globe; each country is allowed to have their franchise cricket, which is their domestic cricket, and then, every two years, you come and play a World Cup," he explained.

In fact, Ravi Shastri won’t be surprised to see two seasons of IPL in a year going forward.

"That's the future. It could be tomorrow - 140 games, split 70-70. In two seasons," Shastri said. "You never know. That's the way it's going to go. That's the way it's developed as a beast of a property. And you cannot hide away from that."