Richard Thompson is the chair of the England and Wales Cricket Board.
The plan to cut the number of matches was a sacrifice he was willing to make.
Some of the proposals being suggested need to be decided.
Two-thirds of the 18 first class counties must agree on any changes.
Thompson, the most powerful figure in the English game who took over last month, warned that international cricket is facing an "existential problem" due to the threat of overseas Twenty20 franchise leagues.
He said that they were anticipating that as a challenge. We can't let that happen.
In an interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation, Thompson said:
Reducing the number of championship and T20 matches that counties play from 14 to 10 would help the England men's side.
The top division would be reduced to six teams with dedicated windows for T20 Blast and The Hundred.
Thompson said the plans could be watered down after a number of counties said they would oppose the changes.
The former chairman said that the review would create a thriving domestic structure and ensure that England reached the top. Radical change is required.
We need to find some compromise to ensure that the counties see the need for change.
"If we have the best players continually available and England are winning in all formats, and we have to sacrifice some cricket for that, then I'm prepared to try to sell to the counties."
I empathise with where they are because they are representing their members.
Thompson didn't want division in the game.
He wants people to agree on a way forward.
People are aware of the pressure from outside leagues. There is a solution and a better schedule.
English cricket had to act because of the threat of overseas T20 tournaments, according to Thompson.
He said that they have never had a situation where a player could be offered a central contract by England and have to make a decision.
It's a challenge because you could sign to one owner and play in their three sides. It is a threat if you follow the sun and play on the tour as opposed to playing for England.
Certain parts of the season need a schedule that protects them. It's because we need to find that balance that things are so controversial.
The review was commissioned by the England and Wales Cricket Board after the disastrous tour of Australia.
The final decision was supposed to be made by November with an intention to implement the changes in time for the season in 2020.
A revised schedule will allow a greater balance between red- and white-ball cricket, produce higher-quality matches, and ease the strain on players' workload according to the England and Wales Cricket Board.
Thompson said that the process is a democracy.
The most important thing is that we get the right result for the game. We do not hurry it.
Thompson said there was too much cricket in the international calendar and that it had become "untenable".
Thompson said that they have a duty of care to their players.
The best player in the world at the time should not have to make that decision.
Thompson praised Stokes' approach to the game and said he had met him in an attempt to build bridges.
He had to be talked out of quitting international cricket after he felt let down by the England and Wales Cricket Board.
Two years after the tournament was launched, Thompson admits elements of it have won him over, even though it has a cost to other formats.
He said that cricket is paying a big price for the competition.
It will be worth it because of the financial gain, which is an important part of the reason why The Hundred was put together. Women's cricket has found it to be a revelation.
There are still a lot of things that need to be worked out. It isn't perfect but it's proven that there is something worth pursuing there.
As an example, we can't allow the Blast to struggle because I don't want to see other brands diminished.
I want to make sure that the Blast is invested in as well as The Hundred, so you don't have one competition cannibalising another.
The game has to work very hard to make sure that doesn't happen.
Both India and Pakistan have expressed an interest in having the Tests hosted by theECB.
Since 2007, the two rivals have not played each other in Tests, but have met in white-ball tournaments.
It is thought that it would take a shift in political mood to allow the two to play Test cricket outside of England. Pakistan wouldn't shift to a neutral venue again because they only just had Tests back in their own country.
The England and Wales Cricket Board is bracing itself for the publication of a report by the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket, which is an inquiry into discrimination in the game.
Rafiq said last year that English cricket was racist.
That will be a challenge for the game. It will be hard to read that.
When the African-Caribbean Engagement programme was launched, Thompson was in charge of the county.
Cricket will become the UK's most inclusive sport according to Thompson. It needs to win back trust quickly. Cricket has an opportunity that no other sport has, in that it reaches minorities and communities that no other sport does.
Rafiq is said to be considering whether to testify at the Yorkshire scandal hearings if they are not held in public.
"We want to make sure that those who have been accused can be tried fairly," said Thompson.
The witnesses would have been told that it would be private. I don't know how that will play out, because for it to be in public it would have to be agreed upon by everyone.
After a year, the decision is made on how we're going to move on.
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