International Cricket Council

IMAGE: If Umpire Michael Gough comes out clean in the tests during his six-day quarantine, he is expected to resume his umpiring duties but it is still unclear whether an ICC sanction awaits him in future for his actions. Photograph: Getty Images — Umpire Michael Gough Photograph: Getty Images

Michael Gough Won’t Officiate In Any Further Matches Of The Ongoing T20I World Cup 2021

Published on November 4, 2021

On Wednesday, Michael Gough, English umpire, was withdrawn from the ongoing T20 World Cup by the ICC after he breached the tournament’s bio bubble a few days ago. The 41-year-old was placed in six-day isolation after he left his hotel without permission on Friday last week to meet with people outside the tournament’s bubble.

The English umpire will no longer be officiating in the ongoing 2021 T20I World Cup after he was found to have breached the bio-security protocols. This is the first breach of the bio-bubble at the showpiece event. The ICC confirmed the breach and its decision to withdraw Michael Gough, while also stating that it recognizes the extended periods he has spent in bio-secure conditions over the past two years.

Michael Gough Won’t Be Appointed To Officiate Any Further Matches In 2021 T20I World Cups For Bio Bubble Breach

The ICC also vowed to continue to support the wellbeing of all match officials operating in this environment.

“…umpire Gough will not be appointed to any further matches during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 following a breach of the bio-security protocols,” the ICC said in a statement.

International Cricket Council – AFP File Photo

“The ICC recognizes the extended periods he has spent in bio-secure conditions over the past two years and will continue to support the wellbeing of all match officials operating in this environment,” it added.

Michael Gough was to officiate in last Sunday’s game between India and New Zealand in Dubai but was withdrawn following his breach and was replaced by South Africa’s Marais Erasmus. The former Durham batsman, the current umpire, is currently regarded as one of the best umpires in international cricket. He was being tested every alternate day during his isolation.

Michael Gough Finished Serving A Six-Day Suspension And Missed India-NZ Match Where Marais Erasmus Officiated

Michael Gough has just finished serving a six-day suspension, and though he was initially expected to return, the ICC said he would be pulled out keeping his “wellbeing” in mind. He had to be suspended from his duties during the tournament for a six-day period starting October 28 following “a breach of the bio-security protocols”.

Umpire Marais Erasmus signals a wide © Action Foto Sport/NurPhoto via Getty Images

The sanction from the ICC came after Michael Gough left his hotel without permission and went outside the tournament’s bio-bubble. As a result, he missed one game; as a result, the October 31 fixture between India and New Zealand in Dubai, when South African Marais Erasmus stood in his place.

Michael Gough had been slotted to officiate in two games during the warm-up phase prior to the tournament, two games in the first round and eight games during the Super 12s.

Cricket/News

Geoff Allardice : ICC Committee Will Decide Fate Of 2021 T20I WC Match Affected By Covid-19

Published on October 11, 2021October 11, 2021

Geoff Allardice, ICC interim CEO confirmed that the ICC will have a committee that will decide the fate of any 2021 T20I World cup game that is affected by COVID-19 cases in the team camps making it clear that no member nation can decide upon the same, unlike bilateral contests.

The ICC already has a committee of medical experts in place which also includes BCCI’s Dr. Abhijit Salvi but it is understood that there could be a few positive cases even if there’s a bio-bubble in place.

ICC Acting Chief Executive Geoff Allardice. (Credits: Twitter)

Geoff Allardice, ICC Acting Chief Executive: ICC Committee To Look If Any Covid-19 Case Arises During 2021 T20I World Cup

The International Cricket Council’s (ICC) committee of medical experts, which includes the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) Abhijit Salve, will handle situations involving a Covid-19 scare and not the concerned member nations, acting chief executive Geoff Allardice said on Sunday.

“I think we have been pretty clear in our communication with the members. We have a committee set up to look at any cases that arise during the event,” Allardice said.

“Any decisions around matches will be taken by that committee and it’s not going to be something that’s going to be dealt by the members as it may do in bilateral cricket,” he said.

The committee will decide the fate of any match that may be held in the circumstances. The ICC has already communicated with member nations that there could be a few positive cases even if there is a bio-bubble in place.

Geoff Allardice Will Allow 2 DRS Per Team During T20I World Cup 2021

Geoff Allardice said there will be 2 DRS(ZDecision Review System) per team allowed during the mega event.

“We have continued on with the playing conditions that have been in place for T20 internationals for the past 12 months, which is two reviews per team, so rather than sort of treat this tournament differently, we have just continued on with what’s in place for the last 12 or 18 months,” Allardice said during virtual con-call.

Meanwhile, the ICC interim CEO Geoff Allardice also made clear that the apex cricket body will use neutral umpires wherever the situation allows. In the post-COVID-19 world, ICC has used home umpires due to traveling and logistical issues.

“I think we are able to get all our Elite panel umpires here and the referees here to officiate in this tournament (ICC Men’s T20 World Cup), the UAE is a country that is fairly straight forward now to move in and out of,” Allardice said at the same call.

T20I World Cup trophy. (Photo Source: Twitter)

Geoff Allardice said that various countries have various restrictions in place and that’s making it difficult.

“The issue is in other countries, which have different levels of restrictions, so our position has been, we will be trying to use neutral officials, wherever the circumstances allow. In a number of countries, there are still restrictions that make that difficult, and moving umpires even as individuals is a bit different to the team moments and we found that over the last few months,” he explained.

He also said that the home umpires have done extremely well in the last 18 months.

“I think the umpires, the home country umpires have performed extremely well over the last 18 months and supported by DRS. But the aim is to get neutral officials back once a lot of those restrictions are lifted, so it may happen more after this tournament, but is a very much country by country assessment,” he signed off.

For the first time in an ICC men’s T20I tournament, the Decision Review System (DRS) will be in use as the governing body has announced that the system will be available at the 2021 T20 World Cup starting later this month.

As per the playing conditions released by the ICC this week for the forthcoming T20 World Cup, which begins on October 17 and will be played in the UAE and Oman, each team will get a maximum of two reviews per innings. The governing body had confirmed in June last year an additional unsuccessful DRS review for each team in each innings of a match across all formats,

Cricket/News

International Cricket Council Allots The Same Number Of Points For Every Test In 2nd Edition Of WTC (2021-23)

Published on July 14, 2021July 14, 2021

International Cricket Council [ICC] has confirmed the points system for the second edition of the ICC World Test Championship [WTC] (2021-23) as well as the fixtures that will take place during the two-year cycle, commencing August 04 with India playing against hosts England in a 5 Test affair.

Just like the previous cycle, the upcoming two-year phase will see nine International Cricket Council Full-member teams play a total of six Test series- three at home and three away- of varying lengths with the cut-off date being March 31. 2023.

International Cricket Council Allots The Same Number Of Points For Every Test

However, unlike the previous WTC cycle where the maximum points for every series regardless of its length were fixed- 120, this time, the International Cricket Council has decided to allow the same number of points for every Test. As per the updated system, each Test match will now carry a weightage of 12 points while a drawn and tied Test will fetch 4 and 6 points respectively.

However, the standing in the points table, just like the inaugural cycle, will be determined on percentage points accumulated.

The second WTC cycle will commence from August 04 when the runners-up of the inaugural cycle, India, locks horns with Joe Root’s England in the first Test of a five-match series. New Zealand is, of course, the defending champions, having beaten India in the inaugural final last month.

Meanwhile, International Cricket Council Acting CEO George Allardice has said that the changes have been made in order to simplify the points system besides taking learnings from the Covid-forced disruptions last year.

“We received feedback that the previous points system needed to be simplified. The Cricket Committee took this into consideration when proposing a new, standardized points system for each match.

“During the pandemic, we had to change to ranking teams on the points table using the percentage of available points won by each team, since all series could not be completed. ” International Cricket Council Acting CEO George Allardice said.

The cycle that runs from August 2021 to June 2023 will see just two series of five matches – the upcoming England and India Tests and the Ashes in December this year. Australia’s tour of India in 2022 will be the only series of the cycle to have four Tests. Overall, there will be seven three-match Test series and 13 two-match Test series.

Skippers Kane Williamson, Virat Kohli, And Joe Root Opens Up On Previous WTC And Next One

The winning captain of the inaugural WTC, Kane Williamson, said that it was pretty special to win the coveted price last month and he is already looking forward to defending the title over the course of the next two years.

“It was obviously pretty special to win the inaugural WTC and it’s exciting to now look ahead to the second edition. The WTC has certainly added more context and brought new meaning to Test cricket and it was awesome to see the interest that was generated around the Final against India.

“We know trying to defend the title will be a huge challenge, but our focus will be on making sure we prepare as well as we can for the tours ahead and trying to maintain our level of performance.”Kane said.

New Zealand's Kane Williamson celebrates with the trophy and teammates after winning the final of the ICC World Test Championship. Photograph: John Sibley/Reuters — New Zealand’s Kane Williamson celebrates with the trophy and teammates after winning the final of the International Cricket Council’s World Test Championship. Photograph: John Sibley/Reuters

Meanwhile, Indian captain Virat Kohli said that the inaugural WTC captured the imagination of fans around the world and it was a great feeling for him and his team to play the first-ever final of the championship. He said that the team is looking forward to regrouping after a disappointing end when they lock horns with England.

“It was great to have played the final of the WTC against New Zealand in what was a memorable contest. Not just the final, we saw the determination of players throughout the first edition of the championship. The following of cricket lovers too was great to see, and I am sure they will all be waiting eagerly for the second edition. We will regroup with new energy for the next cycle starting with our series against England, hoping to give our fans a lot to cheer about,” he said.

Joe Root, on the other hand, expressed his disappointment at the fact that England barely missed out on qualification last year. He, however, added that playing against the finalists of the last edition in India in their first WTC-2 assignment will be a great chance for them to test themselves against a quality side.

“We start our campaign against the finalists of last time, which is an interesting challenge straight away. India is a fine all-round side and it would be good to test them in our home conditions. We narrowly missed out on qualifying for the final last time and are looking to do better this time. Test cricket is a format we all want to excel in and with points at stake for each match, everyone has to be at their best all the time,”he said.

India plays England(away), New Zealand(home), South Africa (away), Sri Lanka(home), Australia(home), and Bangladesh(away) in the International Cricket Council’s World Test Championship’s 2nd edition.

Cricket/News

Greg Barclay Elected As New ICC Chairman

Published on November 25, 2020

Finally, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has got a new permanent head after Shashank Manohar resigned from the post on June 30. Greg Barclay, an Auckland-based commercial lawyer, has been elected as the new Independent Chair of the governing body. He will take the role after stepping down from the current position at New Zealand Cricket (NZC).

Greg Barclay has taken up several roles in administration. He has been a director of New Zealand Cricket (NZC) since 2012 is currently NZC’s representative on the board of the International Cricket Council. He will resign from his position at NZC to lead the ICC in an independent capacity.

Barclay was a director of ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2015 and is a former board member and chairman of the Northern Districts Cricket Association. Greg is also an experienced company director holding board positions with various New Zealand and Australian companies.

Greg Barclay thanks ICC:

Greg Barclay Elected As New ICC Chairman 1 — Greg Barclay. Photo Credit: ICC.

After the announcement of his new role, Greg Barclay feels honoured and thanked ICC for giving him the responsible role.

“It is an honor to be elected as the Chair of the International Cricket Council and I would like to thank my fellow ICC Directors for their support. I hope we can come together to lead the sport and emerge from the global pandemic in a strong position and poised for growth.

“I look forward to working in partnership with our Members to strengthen the game in our core markets as well as grow it beyond that ensuring more of the world can enjoy cricket. I take my position as a custodian of the game very seriously and am committed to working on behalf of all 104 ICC Members to create a sustainable future for our sport.

“I’d like to thank Imran Khwaja for his leadership as acting ICC Chair during a difficult period for the game and I look forward to continuing a close working relationship with him in the future.”

Greg Barclay replaced Imran Khwaja, who had been the interim chairman after Manohar resigned from his position back in June.

Nuwan Zoysa Disagrees With ICC Corruption Charges On Him

Cricket/News

Nuwan Zoysa Disagrees With ICC Anti-Corruption Unit’s Verdict

Published on November 21, 2020November 21, 2020

Former Sri Lanka cricketer Nuwan Zoysa has denied all the corruption charges International Cricket Council (ICU) had accused him of. He stated that the charges against him are ‘fallacious and cheap gimmick’ to tarnish his and his country’s reputation.

ICC has accused him of three offences and said Zoysa would remain suspended until punishment is given to him. The former cricketer has been serving suspension since October 2018. But on Thursday (November 19, 2020), ICC had found him guilty under Article 2.1.1, Article 2.1.4, and Article 2.4.4.

Nuwan Zoysa Disagrees With ICC Anti-Corruption Unit's Verdict 2 — Nuwan Zoysa. Image Credit: Twitter.

Zoysa was shocked soon after ICC’s announcement. He has alleged fault technicalities of the process, stating that the ICC which concluded its hearing on September 18 should have announced its decision within 30 days. Still, when it didn’t happen, he instructed his counsel to write to the ICC.

“It was shock for me when I was made aware that ICC had gone onto release a press statement saying that I have been found guilty of the charges that I have never committed,” the 42-year-old told reporters.

“It is a fallacious and cheap gimmick by the ICC to perform such an act intentionally to tarnish my reputation and the reputation of my beloved country,” said Nuwan Zoysa.

ICC had been on a “witch hunt” against Sri Lanka: Nuwan Zoysa’s lawyer

Nuwan Zoysa Disagrees With ICC Anti-Corruption Unit's Verdict 3 — Nuwan Zoysa. Image Credit: Twitter.

Nuwan Zoysa’s lawyer, Warnasuriya said the ICC had been on a “witch hunt” against Sri Lanka and that five other players were under investigation. He also said that the ICC investigators had spoken to him in English, which he failed to understand and claimed that he was not allowed to answer in his native Sinhala language.

“The ACU questioned Nuwan in English, a language he is not comfortable with, and did not allow him to speak in Sinhala. They wanted him to frame other players,” Warnasuriya said.

“After getting legal advice, Nuwan refused to implicate other players and that is when the ACU started going against him. There is a witch hunt against our players,” he added.

Nuwan Zoysa, who played in 30 Tests and 95 One-day Internationals before retiring in 2007. He was also appointed Sri Lanka’s bowling coach in September 2015.

Cricket/News

Cricketer’s Age Must Be 15 To Play International Cricket: ICC

Published on November 20, 2020

International Cricket Council (ICC) has made mandatory that men’s and women’s players should be 15 or above 15 to play international cricket. As per ICC, this decision has been taken ‘to improve the safeguarding of players’. Well, this is the first time that ICC has introduced age restriction.

The world cricket board also stated that they would dissolve the age restriction for any board if there are exceptional circumstances.

With cricket being developing rapidly, the youngsters instantly come into the limelight and the respective board fast-track them to international cricket, without playing a reasonable amount of domestic cricket.

Some young players are capable of taking the pressure and burden of international cricket but there are instances when intense scrutiny affects players mentally. So, for the well being of them, the governing body has introduced age restriction.

Minimum age restrictions for international cricket to improve safeguarding of players: ICC

Cricketer's Age Must Be 15 To Play International Cricket: ICC 4 — Rory Burns (Image Credit: Twitter)

“The Board confirmed the introduction of minimum age restrictions for international cricket to improve safeguarding of players which will apply across all cricket including ICC events, bilateral cricket and U19 cricket. To play in any form of men’s, women’s or U19 international cricket players must now be a minimum age of 15.

“In case of exceptional circumstances, a Member Board could apply to the ICC to allow a player under the age of 15 to play for them. This could include where the player’s playing experience and mental development and well-being demonstrates that they would be capable of coping with the demands of international cricket,” ICC statement maintained.

For India, the legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, who made the debut at the age of 16. He went on to become the first batsman to score over 15,000 runs in ODIs and Tests. Last year, Shafali Verma became the youngster cricketer to play for India.

Ehsan Mani, PCB, India vs Pakistan series — Ehsan Mani. Image Credit: Getty Images

Cricket/News

PCB’s Ehsan Mani On Why Next ICC Chairman Should Not Be From India

Published on September 5, 2020

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ehsan Mani believes that the next Internal Cricket Council (ICC) chairman should not be from the ‘big three’ cricket nation — Australia, England and India. As per him, there is a lot of politics and favouritism in the governing council.

Ehsan Mani is said to be a strong contender for the post of ICC’s chairman after Shashank Manohar, a prominent Indian lawyer, stepped down from the past two months ago.

Ehsan Mani and Sourav Ganguly. Image Credit: Getty Images.

While speaking to Forbes, he opined that it would be healthier to not recruit from the above-mentioned three-nation. He said that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Cricket Australia (CA) had introduced politics to protect the interests but now ICC is struggling among the three.

“It would be healthier to have someone (the chairperson) not from the ‘big three’. The politics introduced by Australia, England and India in 2014 to protect their positions – now they are struggling to unwind it because it doesn’t suit them anymore,” he said.

Ehsan Mani lashes out on ICC model of favouritism:

ICC, PCB, Ehsan Mani, BCCI — PCB Chairman, Ehsan Mani. Image Courtesy: Getty

The PCB chairman further blamed ICC’s funding model which favours mostly India and England. He also said that the that there had been favouritism even in the allocation of major events

“It’s not only the funding model that is wrong and skewered to India and also to some degree England. They allocated ICC events to themselves, gave themselves generous hosting fees and the benefits from gate money and hospitality. In 2019 [World Cup hosts] England would have made what Pakistan, West Indies or South Africa do over an eight-year period. That’s what’s wrong with the system,” Ehsan Mani concluded.

Meanwhile, India will host two big events in the coming years- T20 World Cup 2021 and ODI World Cup 2023. England hosted last year’s World Cup while Australia will host the 2022 edition of the T20 World Cup.

Cricket/News

Daren Sammy Wants ICC To Educate Young Cricketers About Racism

Published on June 22, 2020

Former West Indian skipper Daren Sammy has stressed that the International Cricket Council (ICC) must educate young cricketers about racism in the sport. Daren Sammy has been the flagbearer of the recent movement against racism in cricket and has voiced out his opinion multiple times in the last month or so.

Sammy has been vocal about racism following the killing of George Floyd in the USA. Earlier, the West Indian had urged the International Cricket Council (ICC) and other cricket boards across the globe to support the fight against racism.

Sammy was speaking during ICC’s online series Interviews Inside Out which was moderated by former West Indies fast bowler Ian Bishop. It also featured England’s Isa Guha, former South Africa all-rounder JP Duminy, former Australia allrounder Tom Moody, and Pakistan’s Bazid Khan.

Daren Sammy Urges ICC To Educate Budding Cricketers On Racism In Cricket

“There is a need for education at a systematic level. Just as there is an emphasis on education around anti-doping or anti-corruption, the same emphasis must be given to educating the youth on anti-racism in order to help young cricketers understand diversity in cricket and adapt early on,” Daren Sammy, a two-time T20 World Cup-winning skipper, said.

Chris Gayle, Darren Sammy — Chris Gayle and Darren Sammy (Image Credit: Twitter)

Earlier this month, Sammy had demanded an apology after claiming that he was subjected to racism during his stint with Sunrisers Hyderbad teammates in the IPL when he was called ‘Kalu’ — a derogatory word to describe black people — by his teammates.

A Lot Of Cricketers has Supported Daren Sammy

Tom Moody, Isa Guha, and Ian Bishop all supported Sammy’s views and said that it is must to eliminate such sort of filth not only from the gentleman’s sport but from the world. Earlier, Chris Gayle had also supported Sammy and said that he too had faced a lot of racist remarks over the years in his international cricket career.

James Anderson and West Indian all-rounder Dwayne Bravo also stressed upon the issue in recent times and said that there is an urgent need to eliminate racism from the world.

Also Read: Virat Kohli Is A Terrific Guy: Steve Smith

Cricket/News

PCB Chairman Ehsan Mani Doubts Over T20 World Cup 2020 Future

Published on June 18, 2020June 18, 2020

ICC T20 World Cups 2020’s fate is under question because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The Pakistan Cricket Board chairman (PCB) Ehsan Mani also thinks that the mega event is unlikely to be hosted this year for the safety of players.

The ICC tournament is scheduled in Australia between October and November. The governing body has not given any statement on the future of hosting of the tournament. In the last board meeting, ICC decided to wait another month and explore more contingency plans before taking a call on the event in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

India, Pakistan, T20 World Cup 2020 — Photo Credit: Getty Images.

With players of most of the 16 participating teams still in lockdown and international travel suspended, chances of the event taking place this year appear bleak. Australia though, has begun to ease some of the restrictions.

Ehsan Mani, who is favourite to take over the ICC chairman’s role after Shashank Manohar‘s tenure is going to end, said that the global pandemic might halt the hosting of the T20 World Cup 2020. He believes that it would be tough to manage because 16 teams would participate in the event.

‘Given the COVID-19 situation and the number of participating teams taking part in the event, I believe it is unlikely to take place this year,” Ehsan Mani said to Times of India.

ehsan mani, PCB, T20 World Cup 2020 — Ehsan Mani. Image Credit: Getty Images.

Earlier, Cricket Australia‘s chairman Earl Eddings had also cited his board’s inability to host the global event later this year amid pandemic. However, Australia had released the schedule of hosting the series starting from July. They are also planning to allow spectators in later this year when India tour to play four-match Test series.

Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that stadium having 40,000 spectator capacity would be allowed to open booking of 25% of its capacity.

Cricket/News

Australian Opener David Warner Joins Debate On Saliva To Shine Ball

Published on April 30, 2020

The International Cricket Council (ICC) is now contemplating banning the use of saliva to shine the ball in international arena amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. According to experts, saliva transmits a disease-causing organism to others and will put the players at risks.

There is widespread speculation that the use of saliva to shine the ball will be put to a halt in a bid to reduce risk of the highly contagious infection when international cricket restarts. Notably, the global cricket body is discussing the idea of letting the use of artificial substances to shine the ball under the supervision of the umpires.

David Warner, ICC — David Warner. Credits: Getty Images

David Warner joins the ongoing debate on saliva to shine the ball

Meanwhile, ferocious Australian opener David Warner does not see the need to ban the use of saliva to shine the ball when cricket resumes after the global lockdown. Warner reckons it doesn’t make any difference in banning the use of saliva to shine the ball as he feels it is no more or no less risky than sharing the change room with teammates.

“You’re sharing change rooms and you’re sharing everything else, I don’t see why you have to change that. It’s been going around for hundreds of years now, I can’t recall anyone that’s got sick by doing that. If you’re going to contract a bug, I don’t think it’d necessarily be just from that. I’m not too sure but it’s not my place to comment on whether or not we should or shouldn’t (use saliva to shine the ball). It’s up to the ICC and the governing bodies to decide,” David Warner told ‘cricket.com.au’

Just a day ago, India leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal said that banning the use of saliva will give an unfair advantage to the batsmen. Chahal said it would have an impact on drift and swing on the ball which would become easier for batsmen.

International Cricket Council

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