Kolkata: Hard work always gives positive results. Both the cricket teams of Afghanistan and Ireland have done that and as a result of the good cricket that they’ve been playing so far, they have now been made Full Members of the International Cricket Council (ICC) after a full council meeting of the governing body of world cricket at The Oval. Effectively, this move gives both the nations to play Test matches with the top sides of the world.
Both these exciting sides would now get the privilege of playing Test cricket after their Full Member applications were approved by the Membership Committee as they met the newly approved membership criteria. The applications would be put forward for approval.
Dave Richardson, the Chief Executive of the ICC congratulated both these teams on becoming full members and said that this was all a result of their consistent performances on the cricket field.
Said Richardson, “I’d like to congratulate Afghanistan and Ireland on their Full Membership status which is the result of their dedication to improving performance both off and on the field resulting in the significant development and growth of cricket in their respective countries. Both have clearly demonstrated they meet the new criteria and as such have made the progression to Full Membership.”
A newly revised constitution was adopted by the ICC following which, this decision was unanimously taken. The revised constitution has introduced a criteria for membership and has also introduced a female Independent Director and a Deputy Chairman besides equalising the voting process of the Board.
For Shafiq Stanikzai, the Chief Executive of the Afghanistan Cricket Board, this was a huge and remarkable achievement and a perfect gift for Eid.
For a nation like Afghanistan it is a huge and remarkable achievement, the entire nation will be celebrating across all five regions and different provinces, it is the perfect Eid gift. Everyone has waited for this news and has been so keen to hear this news. Afghanistan Cricket has gone from strength to strength and we dared to dream that this would happen and today it has become a reality” said Stanikzai.
Warren Deutrom, the Chief Executive of Cricket Ireland saw this as a proof to the talented cricketers along with the support staff and others involved with cricket in Ireland.
He said, “It is a reflection not just of our past achievements but of our potential to grow our great game. We shall spend the next 24 hours marking the moment and celebrating this great day for Irish cricket and next week the hard work of planning to transition to full membership and Test status begins in earnest.”
The Membership Committee of the ICC will take into consideration requests for both full and associate memberships but, against some criteria. Also only the Full and Associate memberships remain now, after the Affiliate membership was done away with. Hence, all the Affiliate Members now are eligible for Associate membership automatically.
Other than these, there would be a Deputy Chairman, who would fill in the shoes of Chairman Shashank Manohar, when the latter is unable to fulfill his role. A female Independent Director would also be recruited to the board with full voting rights.
The voting system of the ICC would also see an alteration as now, equal voting rights, would be given to all the Full and Associate Members along with the Independent Director and Independent Chairman, where a two-thirds majority would be necessary for a resolution to be approved.
In the future, the Chairman of the Associate Members (who comprises one of the three Associate Member Directors) would function independently of any Member Board.
A new revenue model too has been agreed upon, as the 2014 model has been reversed. Now, there is more equality in the distribution of the ICC income.
The revenue distribution for the 2016-2023 will see the BCCI receive $405 million in these eight years, the ECB get $139 million and all the other full members get $128 million each while Zimbabwe Cricket would get $94 million. The Associate Members along with Ireland and Afghanistan would collectively receive $240 million.
Also, there was an unanimous vote to remove the USACA, after the same being recommended by the board in April and a hearing of the Dispute Resolution Committee before Honourable Michael Beloff QC, last week. In the coming days, further details on this issue will be made known of establishing a new governing body for the USA, basing on some processes. The new body would work extensively in unifying cricket in America.
Shashank Manohar, the ICC Chairman, said, “I would like to thank all ICC members for their commitment to changing the constitution for the good of the global game. This is the first step towards the ICC improving its governance and I believe that these changes will benefit all members and enable us to continue to grow the global game.
He added, “Throughout this process we have shown the strength of a collective and unified approach and I would like to pay tribute to my Board colleagues who have been so determined to reach consensus. They have not focused solely on their own country but have ensured cricket around the world benefits.”