Indian chiefs feel the heat
– India is coming under increasing pressure to name a squad for the impending Champions Trophy, with Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid joining calls for the cricket board to quit stalling.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) missed an April deadline for announcing a team, and will hold a special meeting tomorrow to discuss a potential withdrawal from the 50-over international tournament.
But the powerful BCCI is facing mounting criticism over its stalling tactics, which stem from a dispute with cricket’s global governing body over changes to revenue sharing.
Last month the International Cricket Council (ICC) received a thumping mandate from its members to amend rules around revenue so that less money and power is held by cricket’s “Big Three” – England, India and Australia.
India opposed the changes from the outset and has been hinting at withdrawing from the ICC Champions Trophy in protest, a move that would deal a huge blow to the eight-team tournament beginning in England on June 1.
“We are of course unhappy with what India is getting in the latest revenue sharing plan, but to be honest a pull-out was always our last option,” a senior BCCI official said on condition of anonymity.
“Things will certainly be sorted in Sunday’s special general meeting, keeping our fingers crossed.”
But their tactics have agitated a number of Indian cricketing greats including Dravid and Tendulkar, who told cricket website ESPNcricinfo they want the side to compete at the prestigious event. – AFP
The absence of a single fully-contracted black African batsman in the Titans squad for next season could limit their options when it comes to fulfilling the quota of three in every starting line-up, but CEO Jacques Faul said they had decided to beef up their bowling.
Grant Mokoena, who averaged just 26 in eight Sunfoil Series games and scored 49 runs at a strike-rate of only 89 in his three T20 appearances, has joined the Knights, while Daniel Sincuba played one four-day game, scoring 32 and 0, and has been released.