Tim decided it was time for him to move on, but he did a really good job here." But it was Morgan who survived.While he is fighting for the return of one division with rightly growing support, he may find it difficult to persuade the ECB of a similar return to three days But he is equally adamant. He has also proven himself an astute politician not to be underestimated. He was MacLaurin's deputy at the ECB and has now won two terms of his own despite the Zimbabwe imbroglio, towards the end of which Tim Lamb, the ECB's long-serving chief executive, left.It was widely presumed that one of them had to go, and it was Lamb Morgan does not entirely disabuse you of the notion "I think there was that perception around. I have never considered resignation because there was a job to do and I was determined to do it.
If you look at the last few years you will have seen by accident the best bowlers in one division and the best batsmen in the other. What the hell is the point in that?"Morgan is a mild-mannered fellow who measures his res-ponses to questions with the precision and fastidiousness required to wallpaper the Taj Mahal So that final comment was a sign of real animation. Morgan has been an unswerving proponent of one division, and lost the original argument with his predecessor, Lord MacLaurin."The jury is very definitely out on two divisions," he said. "The former board discussed it informally and it is something we must address. I believe there is real merit in a single Championship, where winning the title would impress everybody."To have a two-division Championship in which Lancashire and Yorkshire don't play each other is short-changing the game and the public. "We have touched on the frequency and the value to each country, and when the Future Tours Programme is finalised we will look at it again."A more immediate topic for discussion might be the dear old County Championship, which causes many more debates than it has spectators (though that gap is closing, with attendances rising). At present, each World Cup seems to follow England's tour to Australia, which not only provides players with a relentless schedule but provides spectators from the two nations with a surfeit of cricket."We will work closely together to optimise Ashes and one-day series between our countries, but to play too much would devalue it," said Morgan.
But Morgan reasonably pointed out that they had simply inflated an already increasing profile. The introduction of Twenty20 two years ago raised county cricket's standing (and its crowds) to a place it had not enjoyed for at least 20 years. In addition, the laying to rest of the Zimbabwe issue, which threatened to tear the ECB apart, and a significant management restructuring, long overdue and necessary if cricket was to gain access to government funds, have provided a well-upholstered vehicle for progress.England and Australia are both keen to try to change the timing of Ashes series. More disputably still, he may also advocate a return to three-day cricket. He will also try to insist that the Twenty20 format is not expanded too far.The Ashes have obviously lifted the game. There existed already a strategy to meet targets by 2009 but recent events compel swifter action. It covers the normal span from Tests to village green, with the usual conten-tious issue of the county game in between.