The future of County Cricket in England and Wales is in grave danger. It's not beyond the realms of possibilty that, as part of the ECB's high-performance review, they could suggest that a reduction in First-Class counties or, even worse, setting up a red-ball franchise league could rectify the Test team's failures. This move would be illogical as it would reduce the talent pool available to pick from, and would severely hamper the development of players on the county pathways if some counties lose their First-Class status.

Also, at a time when cricket is trying to implement programmes to improve participation in the game amongst people from BAME communities, reducing the number of First-Class counties would be ridiculous. Take Leicestershire for example with the county's South Asian population. They are traditionally one of the smaller counties, and if they are 'culled,' Nottinghamshire will be their nearest professional county. This move would be counter-intuitive, as the time and finances needed to travel to Nottingham and back could put people off watching and participating in the sport, especially people from the underpriviliged BAME communities in Leicestershire.

ECB, do not cull any of the 18 First-Class counties. Do not set-up a franchise red-ball league. Yes, changes do need to happen to rectify the performance of the England Test team, but these changes should involve all of the 18 First-Class counties, not neglect them.