The initial proposal of the two-tier system by Cricket Australia was rejected by the ICC, and the inclusion of 3 more teams in the next cycle of the WTC is what the reports suggest. The addition of Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Ireland could mark a major landmark in the development of cricket as the elite red-ball cricket contest will consist of lower-ranked nations as well.  

The ICC World Test Championship could face a massive transformation in its structure with more teams being involved in the tournament. Reports suggest that the number of teams could be increased from 9 to 12 teams with the inclusion of 3 new teams. Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Ireland are the 3 teams that are all set to join the elite red-ball competition in the 2027 cycle of the World Test Championship.

As per reports by the Cricket Financial Journal, the three teams that are Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Ireland are expected to join the other 9 sides in the WTC cycle. There are also speculations regarding the approval of the ICC's Chief Executive Committee, as it is reported that they have given the green flag for the 12-team WTC.  

WTC expansion gains traction as ICC leans towards inclusivity over a two-tier system

The International Cricket Council reportedly rejected the proposal of a two-tier system in the World Test Championship, and instead, the idea of the inclusion of three more teams was considered. The two-tier system proposed by Cricket Australia consisted of an initial phase that included just Australia, England and India.

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According to this system, there would be a classification of teams into first tier and second tier, in which the first tier consisted of the elite teams and the second tier consisted of the other nations. The second-tier teams could compete with the first-tier teams only in the case of a promotion. However, this structure was widely criticised by the teams and pundits, as it would mostly imply the dominance of the "Big Three". In the first tier itself, the matches would be concentrated amongst these three teams only, which would cause a significant reduction in the revenue of the smaller cricketing boards, and they are the ones who are comparatively in need of money.

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The idea of the addition of 3 more teams to the World Test Championship would mean that they will have to play against all teams. Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Ireland will most likely join the 2027 WTC Cycle. The ICC also informed that no additional funding will be provided for hosting the test matches and that there will be a criterion on the minimum number of matches a team has to play, in order to play against the lower-ranked sides.

“It guarantees that everyone is playing Test cricket," the report quoted a board director as saying. “Those that really want to play the format now have opportunities, and there is an incentive for other teams to play them."

In the current standings of the WTC 2026, Australia stands at the top of the table with a winning percentage of 87.50, and New Zealand sits in second position with a winning percentage of 77.78. The face-off in the Finals of the present WTC Finals would be a high-voltage match and potentially the last WTC cycle with just 9 teams.