Ashes tours under debate

The open-top bus Ashes parade was a result of England's first win in 18 years © Getty Images

David Collier, chairman of the England and Wales Cricket Board, has opened negotiations with Australia about rescheduling future Ashes series in the hope of improving England's World Cup chances.

England want to break the four-year fixture cycle which pitches them on a five-Test tour of Australia in the build-up to every World Cup.
Collier is convinced the benefits of a World Cup win, from both a business and cricketing standpoint, could be as important for the English game as last year's Ashes triumph.

But England feel the one-day squad's World Cup preparations are limited because in an Ashes winter the Test series will always take precedence.

The ECB's plan is to continue playing Australia home and away every four years - but to move those contests a year earlier in the cycle to avoid clashing with the World Cup.

Collier explained: "We have been out in Dubai looking at the FTP and looking how we can break that cycle.

"It is something we are talking to Australia about - whether we can have a different cycle.

The Ashes urn © Getty Images

"The idea would be to bring it (the Ashes) forward by one year on a one-off basis.

"At the moment the Ashes and the World Cup come in the same cycle and if you talk to the coach Duncan Fletcher his goals are twin - the Ashes and the World Cup.

"But if we had the Ashes one year and the World Cup the next year you'd be trying to peak certain one-day players at different times.

"You would also end up having two slightly different sides."

It is a grand plan - but also a fiendishly complex business.

The ECB are locked into the International Cricket Council's current Future Test Programme (FTP) until 2011.

An extension of the current cycle would see England host the Ashes in 2013 and then travel to Australia in 2014-15.

The ECB are anxious to avoid any clashes with the 2012 London Olympics, so would not relish moving the 2013 Ashes forward by 12 months.

On the other hand, switching the Australia series first would result in back-to-back Ashes contests - in England during the summer of 2013 and Down Under the following winter.

What the ECB are clear about is that something must be done.

England head into their ICC Champions Trophy clash with Australia with a record of two wins from their last 11 internationals.

The World Cup © Getty Images

With only this tournament and the VB Series to go before the World Cup, England are still experimenting and laying a great deal of faith on the return of Marcus Trescothick and injured captain Michael Vaughan.

Chairman of selectors David Graveney would like to see England using the World Cup year to arrange one-day international tours or re-work existing trips to give greater priority to the limited overs squad.

But to get that in place, Graveney agrees the Ashes needs to be moved.

He explained: "We have a situation whereby every time we play a World Cup we are playing Australia in Australia before the tournament.

“That means it will be the most unbelievable six months of cricket but it is very hard.

"At the present time what we are aiming at is the Ashes but I do understand the World Cup takes place shortly after that.

"Our view would be different if the World Cup was played at a different time.

"Maybe we should play the one-day games before the Test matches, give them more priority or actually play a one-day series without Test matches."