All 104 member countries to be granted T20 International status

[Josh]

ALL T20I MATCHES TO GET INTERNATIONAL STATUS

On the final day of a week of ICC meetings in Kolkata, the ICC Board today gave the green light to all T20 matches between Members being awarded international status along with plans to introduce global rankings in the format.

The move across both men’s and women’s cricket, is part of the wider strategic aim of using the T20 format to globalize the game. New minimum standards will be introduced making it as easy as possible for Members to play international cricket in a sustainable and affordable way.

All Member women’s teams will be awarded T20I status on 1 July 2018, whilst all Member men’s teams will be awarded T20I status on 1 January 2019 following the cut-off point for qualification to the ICC World T20 2020. Rankings for women and men will be introduced in October 2018 and May 2019 respectively.

Code of Conduct

The ICC Code of Conduct review was also discussed throughout the week in Kolkata, with both the ICC Board and Member Chief Executives united in their commitment to address player behaviour.

There was clear direction from both to move towards stricter and heavier sanctions for ball tampering and other offences which were indicative of a lack of respect, this would include abusive language, send-offs and dissent to an umpire’s decision. In parallel with that, the creation of a culture of respect that embodies the spirit of cricket on and off the field of play.

Future Tours Programme

ICC Members have signed off a new Future Tours Programme (FTP) for 2019-2023 that incorporates the introduction of a World Test Championship and an additional ICC World T20 event in place of the Champions Trophy in 2021. This provides opportunities for 16 teams to compete at a global level with a sub-regional, regional and global qualification process every two years, giving more regular cricket to more Members.

The final structure of the FTP (19-23), which received unanimous backing, includes the following:

ICC Cricket World Cup – 2019, 2023

ICC World T20 – 2020, 2021

ICC World Test Championship Final – 2021, 2023

World Test Championship

Cycle 1 – 2019-2021

Cycle 2 – 2021-2023

ICC Cricket World Cup Qualification League – 2020-2022

All bilateral Tests, ODIs and T20Is outside of the above competitions

ICC Chairman Shashank Manohar said: “I would like to commend our Members on reaching agreement on the FTP which means the ICC World Test Championship and ODI league are now cemented into the calendar. Extending international status for all T20 bilateral games and creating a global rankings table is a positive step forward in growing cricket around the world using the shortest format of our game.

“The Code of Conduct review is a crucial piece of work and my fellow Board directors and I are committed to seeing an improvement in player behavior and ensuring a culture of respect across our sport. We will consider tougher sanctions as we work to create a culture of respect.”

ICC Chief Executive David Richardson said: “This set of meetings has seen some significant decisions made for the long term good of the game. Signing off the FTP has been the result of unwavering commitment from all Members to get to this point and we look forward to the commencement of both the new ICC World Test Championship and ODI League in 2019 and 2020 respectively.

“We are particularly pleased with the unanimous agreement to award all T20 bilateral games international status and the move to create a global ranking system for T20Is. We are committed to growing the game and T20 is the vehicle through which we’ll do this and removing restrictions and having all Members ranked is a positive step forward.

“We have already introduced a regional qualification pathway for the ICC World T20 in 2020 which is now underway and we will continue to evolve our qualification structures across all three formats to enable Members to play regular cricket and grow the game.”

Richardson added: “The message from everyone gathered in Kolkata was loud and clear – we must act to create a culture of respect that protects the integrity of the sport. We all have a responsibility to the game and its fans and the strength of feeling around the board table today means we have a unique opportunity to improve the behavior and culture across cricket.


“We are currently in the process of confirming the individuals to support us on this review and they will meet alongside the Cricket Committee in May and make recommendations to the Board in June.”

Regulations

The Board received a presentation around regulations and sanctioning of events including domestic T20 leagues and player release. There has been a sharp increase in the number of T20 leagues seeking Member and ICC approval and the associated ongoing challenge to ensure the best players are playing international cricket.

It was widely agreed that domestic T20 leagues were good for the global game but steps need to be taken to ensure international cricket remained attractive to players. As such, the Board approved the establishment of a small working group to consider the issues and make some recommendations for consideration later in the year.

Chairman of ICC

The Board agreed the process by which the ICC Chairman will be elected for the next two years from June when current Chairman Shashank Manohar’s first two-year term expires.

Concussion

New concussion guidelines, which had been developed by the ICC Medical Advisory Committee were adopted by the Board. The protocols are simplified, more cricket specific and in line with the consensus statement on concussion in sport. As part of the revision process which was led by MAC Chair Dr. Peter Harcourt, the ICC received substantial input from medical representatives of Full Members


Nepal

The Board received an update on the current situation in Nepal and the ongoing suspension of the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN). A recent Extraordinary General Meeting of CAN adopted a revised constitution that had been developed by an Advisory Group comprising of stakeholders in cricket in Nepal. The next step towards reinstatement is for CAN to hold elections under the new constitution.


USA

In the USA work continues to create a new governing body for the sport, with thousands of individuals, clubs and leagues signing up to become members of USA Cricket who will now be eligible to vote for the Board of the new organisation in an election to be held in the coming weeks.

A Nominations and Governance Committee has also been named and this group will identify the three independent USA Cricket board members – at least one of whom must be a woman – who will sit alongside the elected representatives to drive cricket forward in the USA.


Cricket Committee

The Board ratified the appointment of Belinda Clark of Australia as the Women’s Committee representative on the Cricket Committee replacing Clare Connor who had served a maximum of three three-year terms. Whilst David White, CEO of New Zealand Cricket and John Stephenson, MCC both had their terms on the Men’s Cricket Committee extended.

 

[Arham_PakFan]

Won't change things that much.

 

[Donal Cozzie]

Good. All this status nonsense needs to end. International cricket is international cricket regardless of who's playing. No other sport has such a snobby attitude as cricket does towards such meaningless things like stats.

And before the purists jump at me, the leading international goalscorer in football is an Iranian with 100 plus goals pillaged versus pub teams. Nobody claims he's an ATG and most dont even know his name, so the argument this will diminish the greats of cricket is nonsense.

 

[Adijazz1706]

Good. All this status nonsense needs to end. International cricket is international cricket regardless of who's playing. No other sport has such a snobby attitude as cricket does towards such meaningless things like stats.

And before the purists jump at me, the leading international goalscorer in football is an Iranian with 100 plus goals pillaged versus pub teams. Nobody claims he's an ATG and most dont even know his name, so the argument this will diminish the greats of cricket is nonsense.

No dissing Ali Daei my friend, he scored tons of goals against strong teams like Japan Skorea and a S Arabian team that regularly qualified for yhe WC along with occasionally scoring against Mexico paraguay Ecuador etc. Legend

 

[Donal Cozzie]

No dissing Ali Daei my friend, he scored tons of goals against strong teams like Japan Skorea and a S Arabian team that regularly qualified for yhe WC along with occasionally scoring against Mexico paraguay Ecuador etc. Legend

No doubt but I imagine (without checking his record) his tally has been inflated by playing weaker opposition as well as those mentioned.

For the record Iran were a very decent team back in the day. We barely won the WC play off in 2002 against them.

 

[JattMaula]

Wonderful.

 

[CadPakFan]

A good step forward.

 

[MenInG]

FICA Responds to ICC Media Statement following Kolkata Meetings

T20I Status
FICA commends the ICC on introducing T20I status for all member international teams. In line with FICA’s 2016 International Cricket Structural Review, FICA supports inclusiveness across the game and the view that T20 is one key vehicle to growing and globalising the game.

FICA notes that new minimum standards will be developed to ensure T20I is sustainable and affordable. FICA encourages that aim to be balanced with the need to ensure appropriate protections are in place for players and other stakeholders as the game grows in volume and prominence in more countries.

Future Tours Program (FTP)
FICA notes that a new FTP between 2019-2023 was signed off in Kolkata and commends the ICC for taking steps towards creating more context in some international cricket. FICA is concerned that it has not seen the FTP, and looks forward to clarification on:
How the formats relate to each other and operate in a global calendar that is easy to understand for fans and players alike; and
How scheduling for the next five years addresses the positive but relentless growth of domestic T20 and clear shifts in the player employment market, many of which were highlighted in FICA’s Men’s Employment Report 2017 released earlier this month
FICA continues to advocate for clarity and simplicity in the global cricket calendar, and a balance between new domestic T20 and traditional international cricket focused markets.

Regulations
FICA notes the formation of a working group to consider issues around ensuring international cricket remains attractive to players. It is hoped that this working group will appreciate the critical importance of engagement with players and their collective representatives in order to establish a workable framework. Clarity in the calendar, incentivisation, and a fit for purpose regulatory framework will be important for the game and players moving forward.

FICA continues to oppose arbitrary or restrictive regulations imposed on players that are not part of a collectively agreed framework.

Player Behaviour
FICA is supportive of collaborative processes to address issues in the game and is encouraged that the culture across cricket at various levels will be reviewed.

FICA is concerned that the main published focus of the ICC review appears to be stricter and heavier sanctions on players. The players are a product of the professional and organisational environments they operate in, and any global review and process should not simply focus on player sanctions. A genuinely collaborative negotiation of codes based on reciprocity with those who run the game, coordinated global education, and syncing of international and domestic processes where possible, will all be important to the success of overall measures.

Concussion
FICA welcomes the introduction of concussion guidelines and looks forward to further engaging with the ICC to ensure that guidelines are based on science, and enforceable consistent standards to ensure players around the world are protected by the game.

Cricket Committee
FICA congratulates Belinda Clark on her appointment to the Cricket Committee. FICA continues to urge the ICC to afford women's players the same right that men's players have to a player nominated representative on the Cricket Committee, or other appropriate body. In FICA's latest global player survey, 100% of women's players believe this should happen.

FICA Executive Chairman Tony Irish said: “The global game is at a stage where the player dynamic that exists between the traditional international cricket landscape and the T20 leagues landscape has become one of the key factors driving the direction of the game. Collaboration with players and their representatives has never been more important and will be vital to success in the implementation of some of the important outcomes of this round of ICC meetings.”

 

[super hitter]

Great news!

Maybe a T 20 World Series kind of thing should be initiated now.

 

[fluke]

now i hope pakistan can host either namibia or kenya for a short series of 3 T-20s in pakistan