Win Projections to be updated soon
This weekend’s ominous ICC board meeting in Dubai will focus on Afghanistan, the ongoing difficulties of the India-Pakistan relationship, and a new revenue distribution mechanism.
The first quarterly meeting of the year got underway on Thursday with the women’s cricket committee and continued on Friday with the men’s committee. Yet before the ICC Board and Financial & Commercial Affairs (F&CA) committee convene on Sunday and Monday, all eyes will be on the Chief Executives’ Committee (CEC) meeting on Saturday.
The most urgent issues will be tackled on the periphery of those meetings, including:
Afghanistan‘s participation
An update on the situation in Afghanistan since the Taliban seized power there in August 2021 will be provided to the ICC board by the working committee on Afghanistan. Since November, the ACB and Taliban representatives have met with Imran Khwaja, the working group’s leader and the vice chair of the ICC, twice in Doha. They have received assurances that the government has not meddled in cricket matters, but they also understand that it will be difficult to play any women’s cricket as long as the Taliban are in charge.
The working group will contend that since the ACB has no control over the women’s cricket situation, the board should not be penalized. A functioning women’s team is a requirement for full membership at the ICC, but that status is unlikely to be in danger. Members, however, are becoming more determined to take action or at the very least to make a clear policy statement.
Even the ICC administration is compelled to take action, not least because some Afghan women cricketers have contacted them. There have been unofficial discussions of supporting a women’s squad outside of Afghanistan without the tacit endorsement of the ACB. Yet, the working group will inform the board that such solutions might prove useless, if not dangerous, for those living in the nation. It’s a fine line to walk between not punishing Afghanistan and wanting to see advancement in the women’s game.
a fresh method of distributing revenue
The F&CA will start debating a new distribution scheme for the ICC’s broadcast funds (and commercial earnings) during the upcoming rights cycle. It won’t be an easy discussion, just like it wasn’t for the present cycle, in which the rights were sold to a single broadcaster for almost USD 2.1 billion in 2014 for an eight-year period as a single bundle.
This time, the ICC is selling rights independently in various regional markets and breaking them up into various packages, one for TV alone, one for digital only, one for both, over four and eight years, with men’s and women’s tournaments being treated differently. Despite there being more events, that has already added far more value than the previous cycle.
The rights to broadcast ICC events in India for four years, from 2024 to 2027, were acquired by Disney Star* in August. The estimated value of that transaction is just over $3 billion USD. In a contract worth over USD 260 million, the ICC has recently sold Sky Sports the rights to the UK market for eight years. Also, they still need to reach the American market and the subcontinent (apart from India).
Hence, there will be a lot more money, but also a lot more distribution difficulties. The fact that the India market now has a distinct, quantifiable worth would only support the BCCI’s long-held opinion that they should receive the lion’s share of it. The F&CA is led by BCCI secretary Jay Shah. Smaller members seek expanded shares as well, particularly since they received less than anticipated from the last cycle after ICC estimates came up a little short.
The last time around, there were major disputes over the financial model, not least because of the upheaval brought on by the Big Three takeover and eventual rollback. In the end, the BCCI wasn’t satisfied with its share. Navigating this is now made even more challenging by how fragmented and confusing the world calendar has become. Although the negotiations will begin this weekend, no new model is anticipated any time soon.
India-Pakistan
India won’t be going to Pakistan to compete in the Asia Cup, according to the BCCI. If they don’t, Pakistan might not go to India for the World Cup in October-November, according to the PCB. This has been the current situation between the two for some time.
In a news conference earlier this week, PCB chairman Najam Sethi said, “We have difficult problems on the table, but for me when I go to the ACC (Asian Cricket Council) and ICC meetings I have kept all options open for us and we have to take a firm stand now. That is consistent with the PCB’s view that the Asia Cup and ICC tournaments are connected; after all, what assurance has been provided that India will travel to Pakistan to attend the ICC Champions Trophy in 2025 if it chooses not to play in the Asia Cup?
That is the question the PCB will be posing this weekend, but it will do so knowing that the Pakistani government will ultimately decide whether Pakistan flies to India for a World Cup. This week, there were allegations in Pakistan that the government had denied PCB’s request to send a delegation to India. State representatives, though, told ESPN cricinfo that not only had no such decision been taken, but it was also far too early for them to be making one.
Program for Future Trips
The meeting will approve a working group examining present and upcoming bilateral FTP planning agreements.
The committee, which is being directed by Tavengwa Mukuhlani of Zimbabwe, will reportedly hold their first official meeting. Other members of the group include Martin Darlow of the ECB and Martin Snedden of New Zealand Cricket. Full Members can join the group to discuss issues that have arisen as a result of the international cricket season getting shorter as more T20 leagues spring up all over the world.
The panel is sure to hear complaints sooner rather than later given the recent expression of concerns on the lack of Test matches. “The way international cricket is heading now, apart from the big three, every team is rarely playing any Test cricket,” Jason Holder stated following their just finished Test series in South Africa. He was reiterating remarks made by the MCC and Angelo Mathews, who were both participating in a two-Test series in New Zealand.
Governance Evaluation
Reforming the ICC constitution has been a contentious topic that has been the subject of discussions for years.
A single ICC membership class and a push for additional independents to participate on the board of the governing body were two proposals that appeared to garner traction during meetings last year.
On the 18-person board, Indra Nooyi, chair Greg Barclay, and ICC CEO Geoff Allardice are the only independent directors. But, the board of directors cannot seem to agree on anything, and no such proposal was put up last year. In Dubai, discussions will likely pick back up.
India
