ICC meeting: The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has put up a case for quadrangular competitions. Tom Harrison, the ECB’s CEO, argued at the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Chief Executives Committee (CEC) meeting in Dubai on Friday (April 8) that members should be permitted to conduct four-nation tournaments at convenient times. Multilateral engagements are now limited to only triangular events under current ICC rules.
The ECB’s approval is a shot in the arm for the initiative that Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Ramiz Raja has been pressing for at the ICC. Despite the fact that Harrison’s call is unrelated to Raja’s pet idea involving India, Pakistan, England, and Australia, the ECB CEO’s timing is unlikely to sway the ICC managers with many options.
ICC meeting projected no opposition to ECB
The ECB had the support of a few other bodies, including Cricket West Indies (CWI) and, of course, the PCB. It was also learned that there was little opposition and that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) remained impartial. The dissenting voice, according to reports, came from members of the Finance and Commercial Affairs Committee (F&CA), who fear that too many global events could diminish the World Cup’s worth.
An ICC member’s statement on the matter in the ICC meeting
The subject was discussed by the CEC, and it received support from a number of boards, if not the F&CA. The subject goes to the board with two points of view, an ICC member who served on the CEC confirmed to this publication. If the members believe the quadrangular events can be allowed, the ICC will be required to alter its constitution.
Meanwhile, Raja will give his paper on Sunday (April 10) with a focus on the extra revenue share that might be shared among Associate members as well. Finding a window for the proposed event is a challenge, but Raja already stated on this page that if such a window cannot be found, cricket will be doomed. He had added that they have to break barriers for the sake of the game and the fans.
A PCB official stated that this event has the potential to bring forward the cricket fans together across various barriers. This will also bring a further nation vs nation event in a cricket calendar that is being influential increasingly by making a salad of various T20 leagues around the world. The bilateral T20Is have gone meaningless due to this. They believe that the super series can fill the void.
