Almost three-quarters of international cricketers are favouring separate windows for domestic Twenty20 competitions around the globe, a survey conducted by the Federation of International Cricketers' Associations has revealed. Almost 200 professional cricketers, including 111 internationals took part in the survey and 72% indicated that they would welcome 'the introduction of a divisional Test competition'. Perhaps the most worrying stat was that 52% of the players admitted that they would reject a national contract in order to play the domestic T20 leagues but 75% of them suggested that an increase in pay would help them commit to international cricket. "It is clear that there is a groundswell of opinion around the world that the current structure of international cricket is not serving the game globally, and that the status quo is not good enough for the long-term future success of cricket," Tony Irish, FICA executive chairman, said on Monday (September 5). "The entire cricket economy, including all professional players - both international and domestic - is highly dependent on international cricket. To ensure its survival, the game needs to evolve. "It has many strengths and its rich history must be protected, but it is time to significantly move the game forward. That is not an easy task, but thinking globally, and not based on regional or country interests, is a good place to start." Irish admitted that international cricket could start losing a lot of top players to the T20 leagues. "We know from our player surveys that they are facing a conflict between international cricket and domestic T20 cricket leagues," he said. "This is a fundamental issue that we want any future structure of the game to address. Our concern is that if nothing is done, international cricket may very soon lose more and more of its best players to free agency and the T20 leagues. It is time for global, collective thinking." South Africa's Test and One-Day International skipper AB de Villiers urged the need for Test matches to have some meaning to it and has given his nod for two-tier Test cricket. "We have already raised our intensity and urgency just knowing that a Test league might happen," de Villiers said. "There is nothing like the pressure and adrenaline that comes with knowing you need to win matches. It's time for all international matches to have more meaning." West Indies in the last few years have lost some of their leading cricketers to some of the biggest T20 domestic tournaments around the world and have been forced to field a weakened team. Jason Holder, the current ODI and Test captain, believes that separate windows for lucrative T20 tournaments can prevent players from making a choice between international cricket and domestic T20 leagues. "Creating windows [for T20 leagues] would make the whole situation a lot easier as players would not be forced to choose. If players could play both domestic T20 and international cricket, it would definitely help to keep players in international cricket." Australian captain Steven Smith believes that the players 'have a close up view of what's happening' and hence wants the ICC to listen to them. "We want our best players to be on the park as much as possible playing for our countries, and at the moment that isn't always happening," Smith conceded. "Players should absolutely have a say in the future of the game. We are the ones out there doing the job and it is important we are involved in decision making."

Joe Root, the mainstay of England's batting line-up across formats, has leapfrogged Kane Williamson, Martin Guptill and Rohit Sharma to climb to No.4 in the latest International Cricket Council's (ICC) rankings for One-Day International batsmen released on Monday (September 5). The 25-year-old top-order batsman compiled 274 runs in the five-match ODI series against Pakistan.

Alex Hales, who notched up the highest individual score by an Englishman in ODIs in the series against Pakistan, has moved up to No.20 in the rankings, while Eoin Morgan is slotted at No.24.

Despite Pakistan hurtling to a 4-1 series defeat, a few of their batsmen made an impact and as a result, have gained ranking points. Azhar Ali, who composed 208 runs in the series, is presently ranked 33. Sarfraz Ahmed, meanwhile, has risen 21 places to reach the 39th spot.

George Bailey, who played a key role in Australia's 4-1 series win against Sri Lanka, is now ranked at the 17th position. The 33-year-old veteran batsman netted in 270 runs during the series. On the other hand, Dinesh Chandimal has vaulted 15 places and is now ranked at the 35th position.

AB de Villiers, Virat Kohli and Hashim Amla remain in the top three spots respectively. Among the bowlers, Mitchell Starc is presently placed fifth, while James Faulkner and John Hastings have made significant gains to be ranked 18th and 24th, respectively.

Adil Rashid, who had a good series against Pakistan, by picking up eight wickets, is now ranked at the 10th position and Woakes is slotted at No.16 in the standings. The bowlers' standings is led by Sunil Narine of the West Indies, while Trent Boult of New Zealand is placed second.