Deploring the proposed two-tier test cricket system and money-driven control of the popular game, the Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) has urged the International Cricket Council (ICC) and all the national cricket authorities, including Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to come forward to prevent such self-defeating reforms. In a statement on Tuesday, TIB executive director Dr Iftekharuzzaman said, “The proposed two-tier system is highly discriminatory, conspiratorial and unjustified. It’ll eliminate relatively newer test-playing nations like Bangladesh from the global cricketing arena, which is absolutely unacceptable.”
“Nothing but a fear of being defeated by teams like Bangladesh who have already demonstrated the capacity to win against the so-called elite teams can explain such a cowardly and ill-motivated move.
“We also call for rejecting the proposal to delink ICC from the future tour programmes (FTP) which will convert FTP into exclusive domain of bilateral arrangements,” he said.
Dr Iftekhar said, the graft watchdog is deeply concerned that the proposed changes will create concentration of power in the so-called big three (Australia, India and UK).
There will be no effective representation of other cricketing nations in governance of global cricket. The creation of reserved places for the three in the proposed four-member executive committee of the ICC will create the scope of abuse of power with a full range of unaccountable authority which cannot serve the interest of the game. All this is contradictory to good governance in global cricket, to which ICC is committed to, the statement said.
The statement said the proposed reforms will transform the ‘gentleman’ s game’ of cricket into a business enterprise for quick profit at the expense of sportsmanship, morality and level playing field. The priority given to money power will expose cricket to further risks of corruption both on and off the field, which is unacceptable and must be rejected without any hesitation.
Nine cricket national chapters of the Transparency International (TI) in Australia, Bangladesh, India, Jamaica, the Netherlands, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago, and United Kingdom issued a joint statement on January 27. The statement has been directly sent to the ICC and BCB.
