Cricket is in a strange place right now.

There are plenty of things we could be talking about. Alyssa Healy’s impact on women’s cricket and where women’s Test cricket is heading. Western Australia bringing in Beau Casson as their new coach. Or even the pink-ball Ashes Test that Cricket Australia says is still part of its plans, while England have already said they don’t want to play in it.

All of those are interesting discussions. But the one that keeps swirling in my head is Test cricket itself. Where does it fit in the game now?

I’ve asked this question before, but after watching this year’s T20 World Cup and seeing the reaction around it, I’ve started thinking about it even more. Not from a nostalgic point of view, but from a realistic one.

Is the game quietly moving away from Test cricket without really saying it out loud?

When Twenty20 first came along it was marketed as something that would help cricket grow. The message from administrators was that the shorter format would bring in new fans and new money, and that money would help support Test cricket.

But now, two decades later, it feels like the balance has shifted. T20 is clearly the business model of the game.

It’s shorter, easier to broadcast, easier to sell to sponsors and easier for new countries to compete in. You can understand why cricket boards around the world are putting more time and money into it.

The worrying part might not be that Test cricket is dying. It might be that the game is slowly moving away from the five-day format without fully admitting it.

From a financial point of view, it makes sense. But where does that leave Test cricket?

The reality is that only a handful of countries can truly compete in the longest format. Australia, England and India are the obvious ones, with teams such as New Zealand, South Africa and a few others still pushing hard.

But if you’re a developing cricket nation, what’s the incentive to invest heavily in Test cricket?

Take a country like Italy as an example. This isn’t disrespectful to them, it’s just being realistic. Are they ever going to be competitive in Test cricket against the top nations?

Probably not. But could they build a strong T20 side and compete on the world stage? Absolutely. That’s why we’re seeing more teams focus their energy there.

Afghanistan is probably the best example of that. Their rise in international cricket has largely come through white-ball formats. They’ve built a competitive side by focusing on the shorter game, and now they’re a team that nobody takes lightly. That pathway simply doesn’t exist in the same way through Test cricket anymore.

Then you add the influence of franchise leagues and private money into the mix. Around the world there are more T20 leagues than ever before. They offer players huge opportunities and, in many cases, life-changing money. It’s hard to blame players for wanting to be part of that.

But it also raises another question about the future of the game.

If the best players are spending more time in franchise leagues, with some players/selectors even choosing to rest from certain series for their country in favour T20 franchise cricket, and cricket boards investing more heavily in T20 competitions, what does that mean for Test cricket 10 years from now?

The worrying part might not be that Test cricket is dying. It might be that the game is slowly moving away from the five-day format without fully admitting it.

Because for all the excitement of T20 cricket, there is still something about Test cricket that no other format can replace. It’s the toughest format in the game. Five days where every skill is tested. Batters, bowlers and captains are all pushed to their limits. That’s how I remember it. It’s where the best players prove how good they really are.

The question now is whether the modern game still has the space, and the appetite, to protect it. Because if it doesn’t, we might wake up in 2036 and realise Test cricket hasn’t disappeared.

But it has become something very different.