NEW DELHI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday suspended Cricket Canada from ICC membership with immediate effect after its Board meetings in Ahmedabad, citing serious breaches of membership obligations.
“The ICC Board resolved to suspend Cricket Canada from ICC membership with immediate effect due to serious breaches of its membership obligations,” the ICC said in a statement.
The move comes months after a documentary aired by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in April alleged corruption within Cricket Canada’s administration. The programme raised concerns over governance issues, including allegations of match manipulation and threats of violence involving some players and officials.
Despite the suspension, the ICC said it had taken steps to ensure that Canadian cricketers are not affected by the administrative issues within the national body. Canada’s national teams will continue to remain eligible to participate in ICC events during the suspension period.
“In taking this decision, the ICC Board was mindful of the importance of protecting the interests of Canadian players and ensuring they are not disadvantaged by the governance issues affecting the national governing body. Accordingly, Canadian national representative teams will continue to be eligible to participate in ICC events during the period of suspension.”
The ICC also said Cricket Canada will continue to receive financial support, but only through a controlled funding mechanism overseen by ICC management. The funds can be used solely for approved national team programmes.
The governing body will provide Cricket Canada with a set of conditions that must be fulfilled before membership can be restored. The process will be monitored by the ICC Normalisation Committee along with ICC management.
“The ICC will also provide Cricket Canada with a set of reinstatement conditions aimed at addressing the governance and administrative issues identified by the Board. The progress against these conditions will be monitored by the ICC Normalisation Committee, supported by ICC management, with reinstatement of membership subject to the Board being satisfied that the conditions have been fully met,” the ICC statement said.
The ICC Board also approved a number of recommendations from the Chief Executives Committee.
Among them is a trial allowing the use of a pink ball in Test matches, subject to agreement from both teams, to reduce the amount of play lost because of bad light. The ICC will also work with the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) on research into lighting technology that could help match officials and venues deal better with poor light conditions.
In another change, match officials will be allowed to access Hawk-Eye data when assessing and reporting suspected illegal bowling actions.
The Board also approved updates to the playing conditions. Head coaches, or their designated representatives, will now be allowed to consult with players during scheduled drinks breaks. A mandatory 15-minute interval will be introduced in T20 Internationals, while batters will be required to be ready when play resumes after a break.
