Sri Lanka, Jan. 18 -- By Amindha de Alwis

Several concerns have been raised in the recent past on the fitness-for-purpose of Sri Lanka's present club cricket system, with the almost overwhelming consensus being that the existing 26-club structure - featuring a whopping 14 teams in Tier A - has resulted in a dilution in the quality of cricket in the domestic system and consequently seen players who graduate to higher levels struggling to adapt to the vastly increased competitiveness at those levels (Be it for the national side, at A team level or even in franchise leagues).

Sri Lanka was awarded Test status back in 1981 and played their first Test match in 1982 at a time when there were eight clubs in the top division. Performing notably...