English Twenty20 cricket set for major reform in 2018

A new city-based Twenty20 tournament appears set to be introduced to the English domestic calendar as soon as 2018 after counties reached agreement in a meeting at Lord's.

The lure of a tournament in the style of Australia's Big Bash - involving just eight teams and to run outside the established Twenty competition for all 18 counties - appears to have cleared its most significant hurdle after it was backed by a majority of county representatives.

The next step will be for the England and Wales Cricket Board to formally consider the proposal at its board meeting in the middle of next month.

It is anticipated a further formal vote will be required to amend the governing body's constitution accordingly and therefore facilitate the city-based innovation.

At present, it is a constitutional premise that all 18 first-class counties must be involved in any professional competition under the ECB's jurisdiction.

ECB chairman Colin Graves has welcomed the agreement, reportedly confirmed in a vote of 16-3 in favour from 18 county chairmen and their chief executives along with the MCC.

Graves said: "We've all been looking at how we can use domestic T20 for an even bigger purpose, especially getting more young people to play.

"This format was invented here and is successful worldwide. It can excite new fans, attract the best players and fuel the future of the game, on and off the pitch."

He has long championed the need to consider introducing a tournament in this country akin to the Big Bash or the Indian Premier League.

"The need to grow interest and participation in the game we love is at the core of our thinking, and this is a rigorous process," Graves added.

"We've talked to each county individually about the need for change, a range of potential options and the implications.

"There's a constructive dialogue with county chairmen and chief executives, the MCC and PCA and now agreement to move forward and further develop this approach.

"The next steps for us all, as a game, will be to extend the discussions and get valuable input from players, members and other key voices across the game."