MUMBAI: The International Cricket Council hopes that the next Futures Tours and Programme (FTP) Cycle would have an ICC event for each year between 2023 and 2031 looks dead in the water after the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) joined Cricket Australia and BCCI in opposing the proposal.
With the BCCI having first opposed the proposal, soon followed by Cricket Australia, the ICC’s plan to have two 50-over World Cups, four T20 World Cup and two more multi-nation tournaments between 2023 and 2031 has hit a veritable dead end now that the ‘Big Three’ of world cricket have all lined up in opposition to the plan.
“ECB is not in a position to support the current proposal for ICC events from 2023-2031,” ECB chairman Colin Graves wrote to ICC chief executive Manu Sawhney, in an email accessed by PTI.
In his email, Graves broadly made three specific points as to why ECB will not be able to support the move.
First, its own bilateral engagements will be compromised; second, concern about workload and health of its players; and third, an extra ICC event in a particular year will take sheen off the ICC World Test Championship final.
“The impact of the proposed schedule on ICC events on bilateral cricket is a serious concern for the ECB. The proposed schedule risks compromising the time available and thus value and integrity of the bilateral cricket calendar for all member boards,” Graves wrote in his communications to Sawhney.
Graves mentioned that “increased frequency of ICC world championship” will devalue it further.
The second issue about players’ welfare was also specifically mentioned by Graves.
“ECB cannot support a schedule where our best players need to play more than they currently do.
“Players’ welfare is primary concern to the ECB and current proposal requires that international players are likely to have fewer days to prepare and rest,” he stated, reminding that the global body should also be concerned about “mental and physical wellbeing” of players just like member Boards.
The third and final point raised is ECB’s commitment to long term health of Test cricket.
“ECB cannot support a proposal that seeks to play an additional ICC Men’s event in a year where the ICC Men’s World Test Championship is scheduled as it risks devaluing World Test Championship and future health of Test cricket,” Graves stated.
