ECB defends Wednesday Test starts

England won the first Test inside three days against the West Indies

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has defended the first Test's Wednesday start, despite England's win meaning refunds for Saturday's fans.

A total of 20,000 people had bought advance tickets for the fourth day but England beat West Indies on Friday.

"This is not the first Test to have started on a Wednesday nor will it be the last," an ECB spokesman said.

However MCC chief executive Keith Bradshaw said: "We were disappointed. We wanted to start on a Thursday."

He added: "The fact that it was starting on 6 May, the earliest day we have ever begun a Test, it was a Wednesday, and the opposition were not known until late on, meant it was difficult to sell tickets.

"But I would like to stress the fact that we had a result at Lord's was a good thing."

Despite the MCC missing out on the best part of £200,000 in lost revenue due to the early finish, the ECB is insured against lost days and will provide a full refund to those with tickets for day four.

Those spectators will also be offered a 50% discount for World Twenty20 warm-up matches at Lord's.

The ECB insists they have yet to receive a single complaint from the paying public after the first Test ended two days early.

606: DEBATE

Pity those who paid good money up front for a day's Test cricket at HQ on Saturday and will just get their money back

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The ECB spokesman added: "These 20,000 people now have an opportunity to come and watch Twenty20 cricket at half price in addition to getting a full refund and we have had no complaints at all.

"Wednesday, Thursday and Friday are becoming normal start days for Tests in England and Wales.

"Test matches around the world start on different days and whatever day you start you can argue against it. If you start on a Friday people complain about the loss of corporate hospitality on a Thursday."

The crammed schedule means the ECB has shoehorned in this current Test series and three one-day matches before the start of the World Twenty20 on 1 June.

But the Wednesday start did mean that the demands for a minimum three-day gap between Test matches from the world players' union, the Federation of International Cricketers' Association (Fica), have also been met.

"The International Cricket Council and Fica demand we have a set number of days between matches to ensure players get the right amount of rest and that is something we support," added the spokesman.