The Hindu : ICC helping ECB's cause: BCCI

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Feb 14, 2003

Sport

Sport - World Cup

ICC helping ECB's cause: BCCI

By Our Special Correspondent

KOLKATA Feb. 13. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Thursday accused the International Cricket Council (ICC) of helping the cause of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in the ongoing World Cup.

Addressing a news conference here, Mr. Jagmohan Dalmiya, president BCCI, said the ICC management was bending backward to protect the ECB's interests and that too at the cost of the other competitors' interest.

Referring to the reports suggesting that the ICC was now planning to grant another opportunity to the ECB to present allegedly certain new facts/reports before the Event Technical Committee (ETC), the BCCI president said, "the rules of the competition are clear. All the competitors are duty bound to play all matches as per fixture and there is no scope either to put on hold or postpone or defer and/or reschedule any match on the basis of speculative assumption.''

He reasoned, "the BCCI was all for the safety and security of the players. At the same time, it is incorrect to delay the decision on any one particular match. The ICC should have been firm and decided whether Zimbabwe is a safe country or not for playing World Cup matches.''

He said the BCCI always believed in a peaceful, amicable solution and granting sufficient undisturbed time to the ICC management to sort out the problem despite the fact that India being in the same group as England. India was put to a lot of disadvantage but still cooperated with the ICC management.

In a letter faxed to the ICC Development (International) Limited office in Monaco on Thursday morning, Mr. Dalmiya accused that, "the intention of the ECB appears to cause intentional delay to pursue a `wait and watch' policy to see the result of other matches in the group, so that it could decide whether to go and play in Harare or skip the match and still qualify for the Super Six stage.

"The ICC management is helping the cause of the ECB by allowing repeated indulgence. In the process, a serious problem may creep in.

The trouble makers in Zimbabwe would be induced to send such threats to the players and boards of other competitors in the group and create total confusion and chaos.''

Mr. Dalmiya has listed five points in the letter, addressed to the Managing Director of IDI, Mr. Malcolm Speed, and requested the ICC to inform of its final decision on or before the close of business hours of February 15 so that the Indian Board could decide its future course of action.

The following five points were listed in the letter:

1. Come to a firm and final decision whether Zimbabwe is a safe country or not for playing World Cup matches. 2. If Zimbabwe is not a safe country according to you, then, shift all the remaining matches from Zimbabwe to another country. 3. If it is a safe country then award the match between England and Zimbabwe to Zimbabwe and credit full points to the latter's account. 4. Levy a penalty of 4 minus points on ECB and debit it from England's account on the ground of blatant refusal to play the match against Zimbabwe in spite of repeated opportunities granted. 5. Financial damages should be claimed from the ECB in due course after giving a chance to defend itself at an appropriate forum. In the meantime, the guarantee money payable to the ECB be withheld as has been done in the case of India.

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