The Hindu : Associates' meeting proposes new format

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jun 19, 2003

Sport

Sport - Cricket

Associates' meeting proposes new format

London June 18. The Associate and Affiliate members of the International Cricket Council have endorsed a new tournament structure for them, involving two global qualifying events in the year 2005.

Apart from the two qualifying events which would also include the ICC Trophy leading to the next World Cup in the West Indies, the new structure has proposed regional qualifying tournaments in 2004 leading to global events in 2005.

In the ICC's Associates meeting, which was held here on Tuesday, discussions focussed on issues affecting the 27 Associate members and 47 Affiliate members.

The meeting also decided to pass the tournament structure proposal to the ICC Executive Board for approval.

The Associates meeting, attended by representatives of Affiliate nations for the first time, also took the decision to increase representation of Affiliate members.

The five delegates from Bahama, Oman, Sierra Leone, Spain and Vanuatu took part in the meeting as observers representing the five ICC development regions, but from next year they will be given voting rights at such meetings and observer status at the annual conference, an ICC release said today.

The meeting recommended the introduction of Zambia as an independent Associate member of the ICC and Malawi as an Affiliate member.

To balance the conflicting aims of allowing promising cricketers to play for the Associate member nation of their birth while not depriving them of playing Test cricket, the meeting proposed abolishing the four-year stand-down period between representing an Associate member at international level and playing for a full member.

PTI

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