The controversial decision to restrict the 2015 World Cup to only the 10 full members will be reconsidered by International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Executive Board in June, according to the governing body.
This means that teams like Ireland could yet play in the 2015 World Cup after the ICC reconsiders the composition of the competition. In April, the ICC announced a move to reduce places at the next World Cup from 14 to its 10 full members. The likes of Ireland and Scotland had opposed the body’s decision given they would miss out on the mega event.
But ICC President Sharad Pawar has asked the executive board to reconsider the decision at the Annual Conference in Hong Kong in June. As it stands only full ICC members – India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, England, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, West Indies, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe – will compete in four years’ time
Pawar sends request
The possibility of a 12-team tournament was also discussed by the ICC’s executive board at a meeting in Mumbai in April but it opted to approve its previous decision to include only 10 teams. But Pawar has responded to the vociferous dissatisfaction among the associate and affiliate nations by requesting the executive board to reconsider the structure of the showpiece event.
“After receiving representations from the associate and affiliate members of the ICC, the ICC president has decided to request the ICC Executive Board to revisit the issue in Hong Kong in June,” said an ICC statement.
Pawar added that he has ‘given this matter further serious thought and will request the board to consider this topic once more’.
“I can understand the views of the associates and affiliates and the ICC will seek to deal with this issue in the best way possible,” he said.
Apart from Ireland, who beat England in 2011 and Pakistan at the 2007 World Cup, the other nations outside the ICC’s full members to take part in the 2011 event were Kenya, Canada and the Netherlands. Scotland did not dispute the decision to limit the World Cup to 10 teams but argued there should be a qualification event.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 20th, 2011.
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