Next year's Ashes series will not feature a Test match beginning in August for the first time in 139 years, according to reports.
The move is set to be made in order to ensure England players are available for as much of The Hundred as possible. This year, Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow both pulled out of the tournament in order to rest before England's three Test series against South Africa.
The likes of Joe Root, Ollie Pope, Zak Crawley and Matthew Potts, meanwhile, are only available for the first week of games due to their involvement with the Test team. However, the Daily Mail report that in order to avoid a similar clash next year, the Ashes is set to be moved forward.
The report states that such a move would suit both the ECB and Cricket Australia, allowing both sides to focus on white-ball cricket ahead of the World Cup in October.
The earliest an Ashes series has ever finished was on August 11 in 1909 and a previous report from the Telegraph claimed England plan to spend the rest of the summer playing white-ball cricket against Australia, New Zealand and Ireland as part of their World Cup preparation
Australia are also said to be 'agreeable' to the change as they currently sit second in the World Test Championship and could play in the final at Lord's in early June before the Ashes begins.
In future years, The Hundred is set to have a window carved out in the Future Tours Programme, along with the Indian Premier League and the Big Bash League as the influence of franchise competitions continues to grow.
It comes after New Zealand star Trent Boult was granted a release from his central contract in order to spend more time with his family and focus on playing more franchise cricket around the world.
It is a landmark move and further highlights the growing influence franchise cricket is having on the game, with Boult earning £830,000 for a few months work in the IPL as opposed to around £260,000 from his New Zealand commitments.
