REDUCE the amount of Sheffield Shield games, reduce Australia's standing on the Test arena - that is the warning that star Bathurst cricketer Trent Copeland has issued officials.
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The star NSW Blues bowler made his stance following reports that the season 2020-21 shield season could be reduced to eight rounds instead of the regular 10 and that no finals series will be conducted.
Cricket Australia is contemplating that reduction, as well as cutting Women's Big Bash League games, as a way to lower operating costs.
But Copeland feels that would be a huge mistake, saying he'd "be bloody dispassionate from a cricket standpoint if the season is cut."
He feels that not only would it mean less games for himself and his fellow Blues - the defending shield champions - but impact Australia's Test team.
"If you shut the shield down are we going to be successful in Test cricket? The answer is no," Copeland said on ABC Grandstand.
"Are we going to be dominant in the world of cricket if we don't have a dominant domestic scene? The answer is no.
"The worrying thing for me is that you cut the shield rounds down to eight, I mean what is the benefit to that? The time isn't the problem, it's just money, find other ways to cut resources from cricket."
Copeland, who has taken more than 300 first class wickets for New South Wales and six Test scalps for Australia, feels red ball cricket is being neglected in favour of shorter-format games.
While he enjoys Twenty20 cricket, in terms of player development Copeland feels it is still important for emerging juniors to play longer matches.
Again he sees that as crucial to Australia remaining a force in Test cricket.
"To me, there is far too many resources being pumped into what is a fantastic product, white ball cricket is fantastic, I love it and I'm a huge fan of the Big Bash," he said.
"But one obvious thing to me that has happened with T20 coming to the forefront is our pathways cricket, getting kids into playing, there are now under 17 and under 19s nationals where there's no red ball cricket.
"There is no requirement of a forward defence for a kid that's under 20 years old, it's a waste of a ball.
"When you sit back as an organisation and your number one goal, your mission statement is to be the number one ranked nation in Test cricket, you've got to sit back and look.
"Is it just about finances or is that our ultimate goal? Because if it is, we don't have any kids under 20 playing forward defences. They do, because they will still naturally do it, but it seems a waste of time, technically they are not required to do it.
"That then gets exposed by the best bowlers in the world when we start to play Test cricket. So it's a vicious cycle which starts from cutting it down to eight games then all the focus being on T20 cricket."
No plans on the format of the 2020-21 Sheffield Shield season have yet been finalised.
