Vaughan fears that the rise of Twenty20 will destroy cricket

Michael Vaughan fears for the future of Test cricket with the announcement of a Twenty20 Champions League.

The England captain, who yesterday celebrated a 2-0 series victory over New Zealand, is concerned about the impact of the tournament in which the two county Twenty20 Cup finalists will play against overseas teams for £2.4million prize money.

England captain Michael Vaughan fears Twenty20 cricket will have a detrimental impact on Test cricket

'My fear is that Twenty20 will become the ultimate competition,' said Vaughan. 'It's exciting and it adds to the pressure on the county Twenty20 but I'm concerned counties will decide their Twenty20 team is more important than their championship one and develop it accordingly. Test, first-class cricket and 50-overs internationals should be the ultimate.'

His worry over the impact of the Twenty20 game were expressed as:

The ECB announced new bonuses totalling £2m for Test success in an attempt to shore up the game.

Details emerged of the Twenty20 Champions League involving teams from England, India, South Africa and Australia the ECB are backing.

It was confirmed England players will be able to play in part of the next IPL event.

All this as the ECB are finalising their deal with billionaire Allen Stanford to stage an annual Twenty20 match in Antigua for a 'winner- takes-all' prize of £10m.

Recognising the threat the Twenty20 game poses, the ECB announced a £2m annual incentive to their Test players.

The system that already awards the England team £180,000 for winning a three- Test series and £215,000 for being successful in a five-match series will be enhanced. Top players earning between £300,000 and £400,000 a year, not including endorsements, will be offered close to an additional £500,000 collectively for each series they win.

The ECB are also looking at how they can improve rewards for excelling in the County Championship to ensure young players still aspire to being the best at conventional cricket.

Vaughan's concern was echoed by former England captain Nasser Hussain who said: 'It's interesting that this week, everyone is rushing back to play Twenty20 cricket for their counties. That wouldn't have happened two or three years ago. If you had given England players the option back then, they would have said, "no thanks". The mindset has changed for obvious reasons. It is a sign that the boys see Twenty20 as a very important form of the game.

'Test cricket will be fine but I'm worried about the impact on the County Championship. Counties will be tempted to put the biggest emphasis on Twenty20 when it comes to recruitment. Some might choose to field a whole Kolpak side to try to win the Champions League $5m. At the moment, the balance is just about right. Test cricket is still the most important form of the game and Twenty20 is a treat. Let's hope we can keep that balance.'

England's centrally contracted players who do not play in limited overs cricket, including Vaughan, have been in negotiations to claim a share of the Stanford money, a potenially divisive situation that has

also involved the Professional Cricketers' Association. But when details of the match in Antigua on November 1 are unveiled on Wednesday it will be confirmed the bulk of the cash will go to the winners.

In another sop to Twenty20 and fearing that players like Kevin Pietersen will be tempted by huge rewards, ECB chief executive David Collier confirmed England players will be allowed to play for the opening 10 days of next year's IPL starting on April 10.

The major new development, however, is the emergence of the Champions League which will take place in September in either Dubai, Abu Dhabi or Mohali in India. The two finalists from the Twenty20 Cup, which begins on Wednesday, will compete against the top two teams from the Indian Premier League, Rajasthan and Chennai, Australia's Victoria and Western Australia and the Dolphins and Titans of South Africa.

ECB chairman Giles Clarke says the competition will probably find a permanent home in England but for now there are a number of unresolved issues.

Lalit Modi, chairman of the IPL, said any team fielding a player who has appeared in the rebel Indian Cricket League will be disqualified from the Champions League. That raises concerns for the likes of Leicestershire, Lancashire and Notts, whose captains Paul Nixon, Stuart Law and Chris Read have played in the ICL.

Counties want clarification from the ECB as to whether they will be able to field their ICL players in the tournament. Modi also said the IPL will have first claim on players who play for more than one club.

Then there is the question of IPL teams having four overseas players to England counties' one, which appears to give them an unfair advantage. Cricket Australia have been given the job of deciding who plays for who and resolving the question of ICL players. They will report back to the ICC conference in Dubai on June 29.