ICL braces up for legal battle on recognition

The Indian Cricket League’s (ICL) application for official status has not found favour with the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Coming under pressure from its full member Board of Control for Cricket in India, the ICC rejected the ICL’s application for recognition. The decision was announced by the ICC after its Executive Board concluded its  meeting in Dubai on Saturday. The ICL’s application was the main item on the agenda of the Board meeting on Saturday.

The decision has evoked sharp reaction from the ICL. Kiran More, a member of the the ICL’s executive committee, said the Zee Group-managed league would explore legal recourse. “It is disappointing. As our chairman Subhash Chandra has already stated, we will look at the legal options,” More said.

“The ICC Board went through the application and assessed it against the criteria within the ICC regulations for approving such events. The Board resolved that the application should be rejected,” the ICC said in a statement.

More, however, said the criteria were recently changed giving the individual boards unfair rights to decide on the tournaments. “These rules are not fair,” More remarked. ICC president David Morgan is learnt to have conveyed the decision to Chandra after the Board meeting.

It is believed that a majority of the ICC members were for the recognition but they came under pressure from the BCCI. Asked if there was unanimity, an ICC source said there was consensus over the matter.