"I’m not changing my tune.” - Vaughan doubles down on four day Test matches after conclusion of Border-Gavaskar series

Former England Test captain Michael Vaughan has doubled down on his view that Test cricket should be played over four days rather than five, despite the raging success of the recent Border-Gavaskar series.

Vaughan, who was criticized by most when voicing his thoughts on the major change back in December of 2024, declared that even though the Sydney test between Australia and India didn’t go the full distance, the public still had a very good time.

“I think if you speak to any supporter over the last three days and you say to them ‘are you disappointed it finished so quickly’, every single fan that went through the gates (and it was a sell out for three days), they were all royally entertained,” Vaughan said on SEN Afternoons.

“It was an amazing test match.

“As an entertaining product (and that’s what test cricket has to be), it was brilliant. It was absolutely fantastic.”

Despite Vaughan’s high praise for the series, there were still issues riddled through out the five matches that the former England captain would like to see changed.

Which would ultimately fit in with the proposal that a four-day Test match would be the best idea going forward to help the format continue to grow in the future.

“I don’t think it was a great pitch. I looked at the batters batting and I felt sorry for them because it was just doing too much,” Vaughan said.

“In terms of the amount of overs that were bowled in the series, it’s the third lowest in a five match series in the history of a five match series.

“We’re looking at a series that we’ve just had where the game is moving on quicker.

“If we go back to flat pitches and teams are getting 500 (runs), of course you need five days of cricket. But if you’re going to play on pitches like this and the ball is going to continue to do just a little bit more then it has done in the past, then we’re not going to need five days that’s for sure.”

And even with the consensus success of the 2024-2025 Border-Gavaskar series, Vaughan remains resolute that his idea to help grow Test match cricket in the future is the right way to go about it.

“I won’t change my tune, Tom. We’ve got to move with the times,” Vaughan said.

“Five-day Test match cricket, love it. Loved the MCG (Test). It would just happen a little bit quicker and the dramatic fifth day would become the dramatic fourth day.

“The great game, which is Test match cricket to survive, not just for our time but going beyond 50, 60, 70, 80 years, I do think it’s now a four-day product so I’m not changing my tune.”

Australia claimed the Border-Gavaskar trophy on day three of the fifth and final Test match of the series in Sydney, where they chased down India’s second innings target score of 161 runs.