ICC Cricket

It will take seven countries to vote for Zimbabwe’s expulsion for it to occur but David Morgan, the president-elect of the ICC, admitted it was a strong possibility and said: “I am sure that will be in the minds of many of the delegates. I think there is every chance that it could happen, but it would be a very difficult decision.”

He added: “I reminded myself of a meeting of executive board just a year ago when the subject of how member countries are governed was on the table.”The executive board decided by a substantial majority that politics and cricket should not mix. For matters to move forward there will have to be a change in that regard.”

Although the government’s correspondence with ECB chairman Giles Clarke stopped short of banning the Zimbabweans from participating in the 2009 ICC World Twenty20, the inference is that there will be such an intervention if the ICC does not act first.”The ECB deplores the position in Zimbabwe and, like Cricket South Africa, finds this untenable,” the ECB statement read.

“Therefore all bilateral arrangements are suspended with Zimbabwe Cricket with immediate effect.”The Government has written to the ECB and has made a clear instruction that Zimbabwe’s bilateral tour scheduled under the ICC Future Tours Programme for 2009 should be cancelled.

“The ECB, who have been in constructive and extensive dialogue with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport for some time, welcome the Government’s decision and share the Government’s concerns about the deteriorating situation and lack of human rights in Zimbabwe.”

The ICC chief executives’ committee will examine the matter when it meets in Dubai at the end of June to consider a permanent change.

Meanwhile, the final part of reg-ulation 15.1 has been amended to: “Where the innings of the side batting first is delayed or interrupted, the umpires will reduce the length of the interval.

Asked whether the ICC was considering ICL’s request for recognition, the governing body’s acting chief executive Dave Richardson said since the league was a domestic event it had to be first cleared by the Indian board.

“We have got a request from the ICL but we can’t move ahead as first the Indian board has to approve the ICL which remains a domestic event,” he said at a news conference in Lahore.

“As far as domestic events are concerned we leave it up to the home boards to make policy decisions,” he added.

Richardson said the ICC had left it to the respective boards to outline a policy on the ICL and players who have signed up for it.

The Pakistan Cricket Board, which has banned 16 of its players for appearing in the ICL, has insisted that it would not review the ban unless the ICC changes its stance on the rebel league.

The tournament, from September 11-28, involves all the major cricketing powers — Australia, South Africa, India, England, Pakistan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and the West Indies.Pakistan also host the six-nation Asia Cup involving defending champions Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates from June 24 to July 6.

Mali, who arrived with other ICC officials for Wednesday’s launch of the biennial Champions Trophy, said: “The Asia Cup will give Pakistan an opportunity to rehearse for the Champions Trophy.”Mali and other ICC officials held talks with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) over preparations for the event.

PCB chairman Nasim Ashraf gave assurances on security.”The ICC is launching the event in Lahore on Wednesday and that is an ample proof that there are no problems. We have made foolproof security arrangements for the event,” said Ashraf.

It will be the first time that Pakistan has staged a major sporting event since hosting a quadrangular tournament in 1997. Pakistan also hosted some matches of the 1996 World Cup with India and Sri Lanka.Australia put off their March-April tour to the trouble-hit country this year over security fears.

The request came after England batsman Pietersen’s two huge sixes off New Zealand allrounder Scott Styris when he switched his grip and hit left-handed during yesterday’s first one-day international.Reports today said the ICC cricket committee had privately discussed whether the shot should be outlawed, before yesterday’s events.

The Guardian’s cricket writer Mike Selvey, a former England seamer, said the shot was unfair because the opposing captain had already set a field for a right-handed batsman, and a bowler was required to declare which hand he was bowling with.”It now seems certain that the ICC cricket committee, among whose members Michael Holding was commentating here yesterday, will recommend the practice be outlawed,” Selvey wrote.

There was little opposition in the New Zealand camp, said seamer Michael Mason.”I don’t really mind because if someone plays a shot like that and it goes wrong they can look like a bit of an idiot,” Mason said.”It’s just another part of the game. Good on him if he can play it well, those shots were pretty impressive.”Batsman Daniel Flynn was also impressed, and said innovation was the name of the game amid the Twenty20 revolution.

“If you’re good enough to play it I think you should be allowed to go for it. I don’t see why you should be restricted. Fair play to him,” Flynn said.”It’s a great shot and you’ve got to give him credit. He’s obviously worked on it and it came off for him. Another day it could go straight up in the air, but he got it in the middle both times.”

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori was surprised to be told it had reached MCC level, and reiterated his post-match comments that it was good for the game.His only issue was the umpires needed to give bowlers leniency, and allow the wide line to be the same on both sides if a batsman switched stances.

Meanwhile switch-hitting fever was starting to build, with British bookmaker William Hill offering odds of 7-2 ($4.50) that Pietersen would hit at least one six with the switch grip in Wednesday’s second ODI here.And there was some incentive for New Zealand batsman Brendon McCullum, too.”The only New Zealander who we think could emulate KP is McCullum who we are offering 11-2 ($6.50) to show that whatever Pietersen can do he can do better,” a William Hill spokesman said.

Pietersen, man of the match in the first ODI, said any discussion about the shot’s legality was “ridiculous” and “absolutely stupid”.

The ceremony will start at 1900 but, prior to the launch, at 1700 ICC acting Chief Executive Officer David Richardson, PCB Chief Operating Officer Shafqat Naghmi and Pakistan cricket captain Shoaib Malik will hold a media conference in the Emerald B Room.

The ICC Champions Trophy 2008 will be staged in September and will be spread over three cities – Lahore, Rawalpindi and Karachi.This year’s tournament will feature the top eight sides from the Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Championship table as of 11 March 2008. They are: Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, England and the West Indies

The teams have been divided into two groups according to their seeding. Group A will include Australia, India, Pakistan and the West Indies while South Africa, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and England are in Group B.

Each side plays all other sides in its group with the top two teams from each group progressing to the semi-finals with the top side from Group A playing the second-placed side from Group B and the second-placed side from Group A playing the top side from Group B.That final will be staged at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, which also hosted the final of the ICC Cricket World Cup in 1996.The other venues, Karachi and Rawalpindi, will host the two semi-finals.

“It is important we have the PPL with the support and cooperation of the ICC and other member nations because we want to make it a memorable event and add something unique to Pakistan’s domestic cricket circuit,” he said.

The official said with plans drawn up to have foreign players signed up for the five or six teams in the event, it was necessary to have the PPL at a time when all teams were free of international commitments.

“We don’t want the event to clash with future tour programme series or tournaments. We have decided to make it compulsory for every team to have at least three under-19 players, with two to play in each match,” he said.

The official also claimed that PPL would not be a replica of the Indian Premier League.

“We are talking to prospective sponsors and event managers and the response has been very good to the PPL which would be a bit different from the Indian Premier League,” the official said.

The Commission’s findings will then be submitted to the ICC Board next month which will then decide on the next course of action.

On May 9, the WICB’s Disciplinary Committee deemed that Samuels had breached the ICC’s Code of Conduct regulations, which involves receiving money, benefits or other rewards which could bring him or the game of cricket into disrepute.

However, the Committee at the time had stated that Samuels’ two year ban was harsh and if they had the power they would have recommended that he get two years probation.

Samuels’ lawyer K. Churchill Neita said he expected no less from the ICC.

“The conviction was not justified at all (based) on the evidence and even if it were so, the mandatory ban was excessive, harsh and oppressive. If the ICC is looking into this matter with a view to doing something about it we would be happy with an outcome that would enable (Samuels) to resume playing cricket,” said Mr. Neita.

Starting on November 1, England will play a series of one-off floodlit matches over a five-year period against the Stanford Super Stars, a Caribbean select side, at Stanford’s own ground in Antigua.”I see the Stanford Twenty20 as a fantastic opportunity for current players in the Stanford Twenty20 tournament to take a giant leap into the spotlight and gain exposure to top class opposition,” Stanford, speaking at a news conference at Lord’s here Wednesday, said.

Twelve million dollars will go to the players in the winning squad with one million dollars to be split among the winning management team.The remaining seven million dollars will be divided between the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB).

Stanford arrived at Lord’s in his own private helicopter which touched down on the Nursery Ground, where he was met by a delegation, including West Indies greats Sir Garfield Sobers and Vivian Richards.He said November 1 had been chosen as the date for the match as it marked the 27th anniversary of Antigua and Barbuda’s independence from Great Britain.

Stanford added he hoped the matches would act as a catalyst for the revival of West Indies cricket, which has slipped from the heights achieved when Richards was a member of the all-conquering team of the 1970s and 1980s.”I’m investing in cricket’s future in the West Indies. We’re at the bottom of a trough, but cricket is the glue and fabric which binds us all together.

On May 9, a disciplinary committee of the board deemed that Samuels had breached section C4 of the ICC’s Code of Conduct regulations, which involves receiving money, benefit or other reward which could bring him or the game of cricket into disrepute.

Samuels remained confident of a positive verdict, one which will enable him to play cricket again. “I want to get started right away,” Samuels told the Syndey Morning Herald. “I have already wasted too much time. I am at the top of my game right now, and I need to start playing as soon as possible. If it could be [the series against Australia], that would be fantastic.”

In their submission to the ICC, Samuels’ lawyers, Churchill Neita and Delano Harrison, have included a written statement from Samuels, interviews given by Richie Richardson, who was a member of the West Indies board’s disciplinary committee, as well as a letter from Aubrey Bishop, the only dissenter in the committee.

It was reported that, in case the ban is upheld, Samuels’ lawyers would file for a judicial review in Antigua in the hopes of gaining an injunction to allow him to play while the case is being deliberated.