ICC appoints Roger Twose, Lawson Naidoo, Imran Khwaja to review delivery of 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup

Colombo, July 22 (IANS) Following the conclusion of the ICC Annual Conference in Colombo, the global governing body’s board has appointed three of its directors -- Roger Twose, Lawson Naidoo and Imran Khwaja -– to review the delivery of 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup, held from June 1-29 in the USA and the West Indies.

The 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup was momentous as the first-ever global cricket event was held in the USA -– with 16 matches played in New York, Dallas and Florida. The Nassau County International Stadium in New York was built from scratch but was met with criticism of drop-in pitches and slow outfield.

Moreover, teams like Sri Lanka and Ireland faced logistical issues due to their hotels being an hour away from the venue. What has come under scrutiny is the claims of spending in the USA-leg of the competition going above the original budget, and who has to be held responsible for it.

For conducting the USA leg of the tournament, an independent company named T20 World Cup USA Inc. was established. ICC said in its statement on Monday that Twose, Naidoo and Khwaja will report back their findings on the tournament’s conduct to the Board later in the year.

ICC also added that USA Cricket and Cricket Chile have been formally put on notice and have 12 months to rectify their current non-compliance with the ICC Membership Criteria.

The Board agreed that a Normalisation Committee comprising Board and Management representatives will be set up to oversee and monitor USA Cricket’s compliance roadmap and the ICC Board will reserve its right to suspend or expel the Member for continued non-compliance.

USA Cricket has been in turmoil for a long time, as it is yet to complete ‘governance reform processes recommended by the USA Olympic and Paralympic Committee’. The trouble began when CEO Dr. Noor Mohammad Murad’s contract was terminated in March, with directors Kuljit Singh Nijjar and Arjun Gona temporarily suspended last week by USA Cricket due to a breach of member conduct policy.

ICC also said its Americas office will work with Cricket Chile to support them in remedying their non-compliance. Neither Chile nor the USA is considered to have in place a fit-for-purpose detailed governance and administrative structure and systems.

The Chief Executives’ Committee confirmed the allocation of the eight regional qualifying spots for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, to be jointly held by India and Sri Lanka. This would see two teams qualify from Africa and Europe, one from the Americas and three from a combined Asia and EAP regional final.

The ICC Board has also approved an expansion of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup to 16 teams in 2030. The ICC Women’s T20 World Cup has seen its participation grow from eight in the inaugural edition in 2009 to 10 in 2016.

The number will grow to 12 in 2026 in the tournament set to be played in England before expanding to 16 teams in 2030. Additionally, the Board confirmed that the qualification cut-off date for the 2026 edition will be October 31, 2024.

The CEC also approved the appointment of Paul Reiffel to the Men’s Cricket Committee as the Elite Panel Umpire, whilst Richie Richardson was confirmed as the Elite Panel Referee on the Committee.

The ICC Annual Conference concluded in Colombo with the ICC Board and ICC Annual General Meeting attended by all 108 ICC Members. The theme of the four-day conference was “capitalizing on the Olympic opportunity” ahead of cricket’s inclusion in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

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