KENT club chairman Carl Openshaw believes the £42,000 payment the county will receive from last year’s Ashes profits is welcome but moves toward an equitable share out of Test match proceeds should not stop there.

The Ashes-hosting grounds all recorded substantial profits from ticket sales, catering and hospitality last summer, yet the majority of non-Test venues slipped into the red, including Kent who announced record losses of £310,000.

Mr Openshaw submitted a paper to the ECB asking for an even-handed approach, although the payment agreed fell short of his suggested figure.

Mr Openshaw said: "I asked for £70,000 and I think that would have been a fair and appropriate amount, but a £42,000 payment is very useful. I hope this is not a one-off, however.

"A proportion of the considerable surplus from international cricket which the Test match grounds are retaining is being used to support playing staff budgets that are far beyond the reach of the non-Test match grounds."