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BCCI make their own cricketing calendar

Pratters

Cricket, Lovely Cricket
From cricinfo
Rahul Bhatia

The Indian board has announced that Australia will tour India every year from 2007 to 2009, and that after the 2006 Champions Trophy it will not participate in further editions of the trophy. Lalit Modi, vice-president of the Board of Control of Cricket in India, said that they were also in talks with the England board regarding touring schedules.

Making many announcements, Modi revealed that India and Pakistan would play two one-dayers at Abu Dhabi in April for earthquake relief. The calender will be announced shortly and is likely to be arranged in a manner quite different from the one the ICC envisaged.

Significantly, Modi also said that the BCCI would produce its own telecasts, which includes choosing commentators. Invites would be sent to major production houses shortly. Channels carrying the feed would merely be carriers, and would have to carry the BCCI logo.

The BCCI has decided to telecast in regional languages and will invite seperate bids for television, radio and other media according to region. The total value of the bids, Modi said, was expected to be at least $350 million. This is a conservative estimate, and if a single bidder pays more for all the tenders than do all the highest bidders for each seperate tender, it will take away the rights. Modi and IS Bindra, mostly silent beside him, said that it was about extracting the most value for the board.

Rebutting criticism that the BCCI had become a money-making machine, Bindra said that it was part of the professionalism of the new regime, and he spoke of building the BCCI's brand.

"We are going to try and restrict the India playing schedule to 12 tests and 30 odis every year going forward, whether they are played in India or overseas," said Modi. "As a ballbark [figure] we're looking at 48-50 Tests and 125 ODIs over the next four years."

He added that India would play a one-day series at home before the Champions Trophy in October, which would help them with their one-day form. Also, before the World Cup, two teams (yet to be decided) would be invited to play in India for warm-up games as preparation.


http://content-ind.cricinfo.com/india/content/story/233297.html

The BCCI has already said to Ten Sports not to broadcast repeatedly the arguement between Dravid and Ganguly with Chappell as a mere spectator a few days ago.
 

Deja moo

International Captain
Neil Pickup said:
Basically, the BCCI are completely in it for themselves, yes?
If they've announced those series' against Australia, doesnt it imply that the Australian board are in on it too (if you were referring to the scheduling bit, that is) ?
 

Neil Pickup

Cricket Web Moderator
Yes, they're also guilty. And if the ECB are in on it too, they deserve an equally large broadside.

The FTP isn't perfect, it's far from it - but it's there for a reason. The Champions Trophy, and Bangladeshi Test Status, were both ideas floated from the brains trust at or inside the BCCI (if not directly from, they definitely had the support of it - Dalmiya or no Dalmiya). Now India have got what they wanted out of it (i.e. another Asian vote), they don't give a monkey's about Bangladesh. They still haven't hosted the Tigers IIRC in five and a half years.

There is a power war approaching - and, granted, the ICC are not the most brilliant of governing bodies - but their mission statement isn't all for me and all right now. Something has to break in the coming months, and it will either be the BCCI or the ICC - either way it ain't going to be pretty and will require intense strength of character one one side. Which is why I'm afraid the ICC won't win and we'll be left having world cricket run for the benefit of money, rather than the benefit of cricket.
 

Deja moo

International Captain
Neil Pickup said:
Yes, they're also guilty. And if the ECB are in on it too, they deserve an equally large broadside.

The FTP isn't perfect, it's far from it - but it's there for a reason. The Champions Trophy, and Bangladeshi Test Status, were both ideas floated from the brains trust at or inside the BCCI (if not directly from, they definitely had the support of it - Dalmiya or no Dalmiya). Now India have got what they wanted out of it (i.e. another Asian vote), they don't give a monkey's about Bangladesh. They still haven't hosted the Tigers IIRC in five and a half years.

There is a power war approaching - and, granted, the ICC are not the most brilliant of governing bodies - but their mission statement isn't all for me and all right now. Something has to break in the coming months, and it will either be the BCCI or the ICC - either way it ain't going to be pretty and will require intense strength of character one one side. Which is why I'm afraid the ICC won't win and we'll be left having world cricket run for the benefit of money, rather than the benefit of cricket.
C'mon Neil, I don't rememebr the exact details, but doesnt the latest ICC calendar have India playing 69 days at home compared to 120 odd for Australia and England ? The ICC shot themselves in the foot. Who'd stand for that ? Besides, the schedule apparently has been built around Australia and England's home seasons, which allows them to tour mainly in the off season, while India has a schedule that has them touring in their cricket season..
 

Pratters

Cricket, Lovely Cricket
The thing is Neil, the members ARE the ICC.

So if a majority number of member countries get a lot of financial reward playing tours with India more often, they are unlikely to object to it.

Another aspect, even if the ICC shows some balls and bans countries x,y,z for a period - it wouldnt matter as the countries would go onto play their cricket any way.

The unofficial RSA-India test after the Mike Denness issue showed it can easily be done.

Increased demand for the sport in India has lead to power in terms of money generation capabilities in India. This shouldn't be the reason for a hackneyed calendar without any structure though thats exactly what is happening.
 

Neil Pickup

Cricket Web Moderator
Indeed. I'm not trying to paint the ICC as innocent victims - things are not right there either. But this won't be the best way forward, will it?
 

Jono

Virat Kohli (c)
To look at the glass half full, if it results in India playing more test matches than usual (in previous years they've played very few, such as in 2003 where they only played 5 compared to the 12 the BCCI plan on India playing) then that's at least a positive.
 

Sanz

Hall of Fame Member
BCCI has set a dangerous precedent, this has a potential of breaking ICC which is the last thing they or anyone wants.
 

SpaceMonkey

International Debutant
It seems that India / England / Australia know they are the biggest pulls money wise for most countries and are trying to marry up and make even more money.
 

Jungle Jumbo

International Vice-Captain
Does anyone else think we could see the 'privatisaton' of cricket, with the big countries splitting up, generating their own cash? The smaller nations depend on the ICC, but India, Australia, England for sure could split away. Possibly the best thing that can happen now is everyone refusing to co-operate with BCCI, which would lead to BCCI returning to the ICC. Both the ICC and BCCI would, in that case depend on each other, so the BCCI could set down a list of ultimatums that the ICC would have to oblige to, such as the lack of Indian home Tests.
 

luckyeddie

Cricket Web Staff Member
I'm not too sure what to make of it - the Champions Trophy thing is a concern, of course, but of the 3 Australia tours to India, only the middle one contains test matches. The first and third are one-dayers - and they are still relatively unimportant as far as I'm concerned.

I know some people will have a differing opinion to mine (and you are entitled to that), but I really think, on reflection, it's a load of fuss over not very much.
 

Langeveldt

Soutie
I guess the BCCI has more integrity than the ICC? That wouldn't be difficult though... Good for them if they want to do their own thing, and it takes two to tango/honour a test series fixture don't forget..
 

vic_orthdox

Global Moderator
I'd be interested to see what the Australian Players Association (or whatever the body is called) thinks of the extra cricket scheduled outside of the ICC calendar.

I remember reading an article earlier and a representative of Cricket Australia talked how India generates "X" amount of the revenue in world cricket, and from a financial standpoint it'd be silly not to go along with them, and their wishes. You can talk all you want about how England and Australia may not need the ICC, but they do need India - if they were to pull such a stunt.

What it could, hopefully, break down is the supposed split between Asia and the other countries in the ICC. What we don't want, I guess, is a cricketing version of the "G8".
 

Jungle Jumbo

International Vice-Captain
Can't the ICC take Test status from the games? Not sure this would affect the BCCI or the statisticians though.
 

Pratters

Cricket, Lovely Cricket
Langeveldt said:
I guess the BCCI has more integrity than the ICC? That wouldn't be difficult though... Good for them if they want to do their own thing, and it takes two to tango/honour a test series fixture don't forget..
That you mention it, earlier it was indeed the norm for two countries to agree to play to honour a fixture. The ICC stuff came much later. It slowly percolated in controlling almost every aspect of the game - intoducing match referees, ICC tournaments having importance etc etc. I read an article on the this aspect about two years ago in Wisden Asia Cricket.

A bit of control - a right balance - from the ICC is needed though I feel.
 

Slats4ever

International Vice-Captain
if the ICC is so hopeless at giving the people what they want, then this is fair enough in my opinion. It's the only way they'll listen.
 

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