Expressing his reservations against the idea of a two-tier structure for Test cricket, West Indies legend and former captain Clive Lloyd said he was “disturbed” by the proposal and believes efforts should instead be made on ensuring struggling teams play more often against the top sides.

The concept of implementing a two-tier Test structure was initially suggested in 2016; however, it failed to materialise due to resistance from various cricket boards. Currently, the proposed system, if sanctioned, may enable England, India and Australia to compete against each other twice within three years instead of four.

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According to a report in ‘The Sydney Morning Herald’, ICC chair Jay Shah is set to meet Cricket Australia chair Mike Baird, England and Wales Cricket Board chief Richard Thompson, and representatives of the BCCI later this month to discuss the details.

However, Llyod believes the idea could be catastrophic for the likes of the West Indies, which ruled the game in the 1970s and 1980s when he was captain.

“I think it will be terrible for all those countries who worked so hard to get the Test status,” the 80-year-old said. “Now they’ll be playing among themselves in the lower section. How are they going to make it to the top? When you play against better teams.”

“Test cricket is still one of the most popular games to play as far as cricket is concerned. But we seem to be putting it to one side, and I don’t think that’s very good at all. We have to have a better system. We have to sit down and work out and not just say T20 is the ‘the’ thing,” said Lloyd.

“Not everybody wants to watch T20 cricket – we want to watch Test cricket because T20 cricket is an exhibition, while Test cricket is an examination,” he added.

Lloyd also cautioned the global cricket body that being reduced to the lower tier with a corresponding drop in funding could lead to the disintegration of the West Indies team, made up of players from 15 nations.

“Our islands have got to play together. We’ve been doing that for years,” he said.

“The effect it would have is we would not be able to produce the type of cricket that we have over the years because we will be playing in a second tier. You can only improve by playing against better opposition. You cannot be playing among yourselves in a lower league and get up there,” the West Indies legend further said.

Lloyd, who guided the West Indies through an exceptional streak of 27 Tests without a loss, including 11 consecutive victories, said all these countries, including the Windies have been a part of the ICC for nearly a century, and worked very hard to get there.

“I am very disappointed. I mean, the point is that all these other countries have worked very hard to get there. We have been in ICC for nearly 100 years. We are one of, if not the most successful Test team over the years. Going back into 1950s when we were in the ascendancy at a certain stage – we worked hard for what we achieved over that period, with only five billion people – with Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, and South Africa having more people than us,” said Lloyd, captain of West Indies’ 1975 and 1979 World Cup-winning teams.

He emphasised that the International Cricket Council bears the responsibility of ensuring financial viability for Test cricket in the Caribbean, noting the challenges faced in generating revenue within the region.

“We have a great history, and now you’re going to tell us, because of a monetary situation, this is how it’s going to be. You see the T20 tournaments have destroyed our cricket, because if you come from our cricket nation, such a small population, when you’re losing all of your players, because they’re being offered more money,” said Lloyd.

“But look at our achievements, and when it came to a situation of holding tournaments, we’re 14 islands. We have to fly everywhere, and our cricket is held during a very expensive period for hotels, so we struggle a lot. We need a special dispensation because we are islands. You can imagine them talking about dismantling the West Indies teams and playing as their own (islands),” he added.