Mark Nicholas calls for counties to relinquish first-class status

On the day that Hampshire unveiled the latest stage of their ambitious ground development plans, one of their most famous former captains, Mark Nicholas, has reignited the debate about the future of county cricket by stating that there would be "no shame" in some counties losing their first-class status. The Rose Bowl, which stages the start of the NatWest Series between England and Australia today, is midway through a £45m development which includes two impressive new stands, opened today for the first time. The development will also include a four-star hotel, a new media centre and an upgrade of the golf course from nine to 18 holes. Such a transformation of Hampshire's facilities has left the county firmly in support of the Test Match Grounds group's growing belief that the present structure of 18 first-class counties undermines the potential of Twenty20 cricket in England. Nicholas, who captained Hampshire from 1985-1995 and who is now best known for his suave commentary style, takes that stance a step further in the July edition of the Wisden Cricketer as he calls for up to seven counties to abandon their first-class status. "It would be no shame for some counties to relinquish their first-class status," he suggests. "The battle to survive is self-serving and damaging to the game's resources. Derbyshire, Northamptonshire, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire – to name four of six or seven – exist for no obviously justifiable reason." "County clubs should be centres of excellence but too many are not, employing mediocre cricketers from elsewhere. They stumble along the breadline, sustained by money from Sky." He even has a sideswipe at the ECB's chairman, Giles Clarke. "The argument made on their behalf by [Clarke] is equally self-serving," he writes.