International Cricket Council leaves BCCI out of its new working group

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has put together a new working group without the presence of the richest cricket body in the world, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in it, according to latest media reports in India. This development is set to escalate the ongoing feud between the ICC and the BCCI. It comes one day before the BCCI is set to formally appoint former India captain Sourav Ganguly as its new President.

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An effort to negate the 'Big Three' model

The 'Big Three' model, which was in place from 1998 to 2016, gave the lion's share of the ICC's revenue to the BCCI, Cricket Australia (CA) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). Sources cited to a leading news agency that the ICC's revenues have grown in recent times but the Big Three model leads to the BCCI taking home massive profits while other ICC members struggle with finances. The new group formed aims to establish a new governance structure in the ICC.

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It has been reported that the aim of the group is to get more independent directors in the ICC board. The group is also void of any representation from the ECB. It will be headed by CA chairman Earl Eddings, PCB chairman Ehsan Mani, New Zealand Cricket chairman Greg Barclay, Cricket South Africa President Chris Nenzani, Cricket West Indies President Ricky Skerritt and Cricket Scotland chairman Tony Brian. Earlier, the ICC had suggested that it would aim at conducting yearly World T20 tournaments and a Cricket World Cup every three years. The BCCI resisted the move as it would affect their media earnings and increase the possibility of a player burnout.

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A new chapter for BCCI begins on October 23

Sourav Ganguly will assume his position as the new BCCI President on October 23. Amit Shah's son, Jay Shah, will serve as the Secretary in this new team. The Ganguly-led BCCI team will address the issues with the ICC in the days to come. The BCCI has been persistent with wanting to receive higher percentages of the ICC revenue since India generates the most revenue for the ICC. 

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