Should WSC records be counted in Test records?

Next year will mark 40 years since the start of World Series Cricket, a two-year breakaway cricket competition run by Kerry Packer that featured most of the world’s best players at the time.

The cricket was arguably some of the fiercest ever played, with Supertests featuring Australia, the West Indies and a Rest of the World XI. However, because the Supertests weren’t sanctioned by the International Cricket Council (ICC), the runs, wickets and catches taken aren’t included in official Test records.

Last year, Cricket Australia officially recognised World Series Cricket records by creating a separate category for them. However, retrospectively incorporating these statistics in official Test records is a decision that could only be made by the ICC, and they have never shown any real inclination to do this.

Standout performers in World Series Cricket included Greg Chappell (1415 runs at 56.6), Viv Richards (1281 runs at 55.7), Barry Richards (554 runs at 79.14), Dennis Lillee (67 wickets at 26.87) and Andy Roberts (50 wickets at 24.14).

If WSC records were included in official records, the historical standing of some players would alter significantly.
theroar.com.au