Men’s Test cricket will return after a gap to match the Covid-induced global lockdown of 2020. What does this mean for the format?
Long time no see
Najmul Hossain Shanto and Shan Masood swapping team sheets after the toss at Mirpur will mark the end of a 124-day gap between the starts of two consecutive men’s Test matches. The last match, the Ashes Test at Sydney, has also been the only Test in the first four-and-a-quarter months of 2026.
This is not normal. For perspective, when Covid-19 brought the world to a standstill in 2020, the gap was 131 days – only a week longer than in 2026. In fact, if one ignores Covid-19 and the ODI World Cups, men’s Test cricket has not had a longer gap in more than half a century.
Four-month gaps between the start of two men’s Tests since 1950
| Last Test before gap | Venue | Start date | First Test after gap | Venue | Start date | Gap | Reason |
| England v West Indies | The Oval | 22.8.1957 | South Africa v Australia | Johannesburg | 23.12.1957 | 123 | |
| England v Pakistan | The Oval | 24.8.1967 | Australia v India | Adelaide | 23.12.1967 | 121 | |
| South Africa v Australia | Port Elizabeth | 5.3.1970 | Australia v England | Brisbane | 27.11.1970 | 267 | South Africa’s ban |
| England v India | The Oval | 19.8.1971 | West Indies v New Zealand | Kingston | 16.2.1972 | 181 | South Africa’s ban |
| England v Australia | The Oval | 10.8.1972 | India v England | Delhi | 20.12.1972 | 132 | |
| England v West Indies | Lord’s | 23.8.1973 | Australia v New Zealand | Melbourne | 29.12.1973 | 128 | |
| Pakistan v West Indies | Karachi | 1.3.1975 | England v Australia | Birmingham | 10.7.1975 | 131 | ODI World Cup |
| Afghanistan v Ireland | Dehradun | 15.3.2019 | England v Ireland | Lord’s | 24.7.2019 | 131 | ODI World Cup |
| New Zealand v India | Christchurch | 29.2.2020 | England v West Indies | Southampton | 8.7.2020 | 130 | Covid-19 |
| England v Australia | The Oval | 27.7.2023 | Bangladesh v New Zealand | Sylhet | 28.11.2023 | 124 | ODI World Cup |
| Australia v England | Sydney | 4.1.2026 | Bangladesh v Pakistan | Mirpur | 8.5.2026 | 124 |
What was Test cricket like half a century ago? Only six teams played Tests back then. Barring exceptions, all cricket used to be played in “seasons” – in the summer (of the Northern Hemisphere) in England, winter in the rest of the world. That is also why – barring unforced scenarios – Test matches in England feature in every single row of the above table until 2026.
Of course, “cricket seasons” still exist, but shorter tours have made the calendar more flexible.
The 2019 and 2023 World Cups influenced unusual gaps partly for the same reason. Both tournaments were played outside the usual February-March window, and ODI World Cups are longer than their T20 counterparts. As a result, England did not play a home Test in 2019 until July 24 (a record since 1882). In 2023, the Test season in Asia was similarly delayed.
The gap in 2026 has nothing to do with seasons. Had Test cricket waited for the summer in the British Isles, the gap between the Ashes Test at Sydney and the Ireland-New Zealand Test at Belfast would have been 143 days. Barring the early 1970s, when tours had to be cancelled immediately after South Africa’s ban, Test cricket was never made to wait that long since the Second World War. And it would almost certainly have been the case had Pakistani cricketers been eligible for the IPL and Bangladeshis had greater representation in the league.
What caused this gap in 2026? The 2026 T20 World Cup can, of course, be cited as a reason behind the long gap. However, the tournament lasted exactly 30 days and was completed two months before the Bangladesh-Pakistan Test. The T20 World Cup began a mere two weeks after the BBL and the SA20 got over. And within three weeks of the World Cup, the PSL and the IPL began almost simultaneously. Between them, the four leagues drew out the top cricketers from around the world.
While it has not been formally announced, Test cricket had to be fitted into the gaps between the leagues and not the other way round. This is not going to be a one-off. The FTPs have not been announced, but similar four-month gaps are likely to occur if there is a T20 World Cup in February or March – in other words, in every “even” year.
Can the windows be formalised, please?
Test cricket now has more teams and matches than it ever had. The WTC, its first global tournament, is imperfect but running, and is into its fourth cycle. Despite that, unforced inter-match gaps that span a third of the year are likely to become more and more common over time.
Part of that is because the format has become increasingly lopsided towards India, England, and Australia. The lack of revenue leaves little incentive for the other teams to push for Test cricket. When it clashed with the SA20, South Africa did not hesitate to send a second-string Test side to New Zealand in 2023/24. In 2025/26, their first season after their maiden WTC title win, South Africa did not play a single home Test match. The WTC title had not boosted Test cricket in New Zealand in any significant way, either. And these are just two examples.
Whether we like it or not, there is little doubt that the boards (nor the fans) are unlikely to prioritise Test cricket over their T20 leagues. It is thus perhaps better to have the windows for the leagues formalised and included in the FTP as much in advance as possible.
That is something to look forward to in the next ICC meetings.
