Chief executive Tim Bostock says Durham being given a tier one women’s team is the “most visible way” the England and Wales Cricket Board has put past issues with the county to bed.

Durham were stripped of Test status and demoted to Division Two of the County Championship in October 2016 as part of a raft of unprecedented sanctions for accepting a £3.8million bailout from the ECB.

While Durham are back in Division One this season, captain Scott Borthwick said last year there remains some bitterness towards the ECB from a lot of people at the club at how the situation was handled.

But Bostock thinks relations, at least at hierarchical level, thawed some time ago and he argued Durham being awarded one of the eight professionalised women’s teams last week is a telling indicator of that.

“I was always focused on fixing what was in front of me and rebuilding relationships everywhere but particularly with the ECB,” Bostock, who joined Durham in July 2018, told the PA news agency.

“No matter what, if you’re going to war with your governing body, who are your main funders and your main decision-makers, you’re not going to get anywhere and that’s the same in any walk of life.

“Our focus was on rebuilding our reputation and by doing that we got a place at the top table again, which meant we were in a position to influence in a positive way future decisions.

“During the last period, the ECB has been very supportive of Durham. This isn’t the first time they’ve demonstrated it but this is the most visible way the ECB has demonstrated that the past is behind us.”

The current women’s regional structure is being replaced next year as teams have been aligned with Durham, Essex, Hampshire, Lancashire, Nottinghamshire, Somerset, Surrey and Warwickshire.

Bostock believes one of the biggest selling points in Durham’s pitch as they edged out rival bids from the likes of Yorkshire was that all their home games would be played at the Seat Unique Riverside.

“The stability of the club is one thing and our vision for the future,” Bostock said. “Reputation-wise, we took a bit of a hit a few years ago but we’ve managed to rebuild that.

“All of our games will be played at the main ground, an international ground and giving the women the stage to demonstrate what they can do and not have to play on outgrounds.

“There will be the same effort and expertise going into making the women the best they can possibly be as what goes into the men. That is absolutely right.”

The decision seemingly boosts Durham’s prospects of being involved in The Hundred from next year, with the ECB contemplating expanding the tournament from eight to 10 teams and pursuing private investment.

One of the proposals under consideration and said to be favoured by the ECB is giving host counties 51 per cent of equity in their team that they could then sell off to receive a significant windfall.

Indeed, the financial assistance could go a long way to paying off a £27million hotel complex at Durham’s ground, currently in the planning stage, which Bostock estimates will be a “game-changer” for the county, quadrupling profits and doubling turnover.

“There’s no doubt having a professional women’s team helps with aspirations for a team in The Hundred,” Bostock added.

“It’s critical we get a Hundred team here. Financially it’s going to be a massive boon. The difference between The Hundred teams and non-Hundred teams financially is going to be like chalk and cheese.

“The proposed sell-off of the teams is a significant amount of money. It would put the club on a really, really strong financial footing which then goes all the way back into the development of cricket with the men and women, it all mushrooms from there.”

There are question marks over the long-term future of The Hundred following reports that the England and Wales Cricket Board is open to reviewing the format.

There have been two seasons of the eight-team tournament, with a third due to get under way in August, but it continues to divide opinion and attract debate.

The Hundred was effectively ring-fenced and spared scrutiny during the high-performance review of English cricket helmed by Sir Andrew Strauss last year, but with several of its key recommendations discarded the Daily Mail and The Cricketer have reported that the governing body is now ready to put it back on the table. The ECB has been approached for comment.

Reverting to the T20 format and a two-division structure with promotion and relegation is one suggestion, but any changes are unlikely to come quickly. While contracts associated to the competition, from players to backroom staff, typically run year to year and could be unpicked with relative ease, the ECB’s current broadcast deal with Sky runs to 2028 while the BBC’s existing free-to-air arrangement covers at least the next two editions.

It is perhaps relevant that the ECB is currently led by chief executive Richard Gould and chair Richard Thompson. The pair held matching roles at Surrey when The Hundred was first under mooted, with the club forthright in their opposition during their tenure.

Gould has publicly reversed his stance since taking over at the ECB, declaring the 100-ball tournament “a significant success” and predicting it would have “a long future”.

Opinions on The Hundred remain mixed. The elevation of the women’s game has been an unvarnished success, while there is evidence that the scheduling, marketing and ticket pricing have helped attract new fans and a broader demographic to cricket grounds.

But the financial situation is disputed. A report from Worcestershire chair Fanos Hira, a chartered accountant, attaches a £9million loss to the first two seasons but the ECB argues that it turned a profit of £11.8m.

The Hundred has been granted a clear window at the height of summer, taking place throughout August in the immediate aftermath of the Ashes, but appears unlikely to be granted the same luxury in 2024.