The two men who are proposing an English Twenty20 Premier League to rival the Indian Premier League have defended the proposal.

Keith Bradshaw, the secretary of the MCC, and Surrey chairman David Stewart have come up with a lucrative £50million plan.

The traditional counties would be replaced by nine franchises, who would take part in a 57-match tournament.

"We make no apologies for preparing this board discussion paper," a statement issued by them said.

"We strongly believe the idea of an English Twenty20 tournament, taking the best from the Indian Premier League and combining it with the strengths of the English game, is worthy of considerable debate and discussion."

The matter will be discussed at an England and Wales Cricket Board meeting on Tuesday but after it was leaked, the proposal was widely criticised.

ECB chairman Giles Clarke played down the proposal saying: "There has been a lot of debate and discussion over what is the most optimal format for the summer - what will generate the most money, what spectators want to watch, how it will help the England cricket team.

"I'm firmly in favour of 18 counties playing at their county grounds. I'm not remotely interested in the reduction of counties."

The joint statement added: "We are naturally disappointed that the paper has been leaked before the ECB board can discuss it.

"It was the intention of the paper to stimulate discussion and if the idea is welcomed by the board we want to engage all the counties in a consultative process.

"There already has been speculation about whether such a tournament can generate extra revenue for cricket.

"We are aware of significant interest from potential financial backers and are confident that a tournament can generate considerable revenues for all 18 counties and the grass roots of the game."

The tournament would be scheduled for each June and July from 2010 onwards and last for 25 days.