What’s the story?
In what is likely to come as a major boost to fans, advertisers, and broadcasters, India are all set to take part in the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 which takes place in England and Wales starting from June 1.
The BCCI members are set to decide on whether India should pull out of the upcoming ICC tournament at the Special General Meeting on Sunday (May 7) but sources close to Sportskeeda said that the CoA is keen to send the team to England as they do not want to sour relationship with the ICC and isolate India at the global stage
The ongoing tussle between BCCI and ICC had given birth to doubts surrounding India’s participation in the tournament and BCCI also missed the April 25 deadline to submit the squad. The Committee of Administrators (CoA) and 12 former players including Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar are in favor of India’s participation in the tournament.
In case you didn’t know…
After being outvoted in the ICC Board meeting in April about the new finance model, BCCI stood to lose a lot of money, which didn’t go down too well with the board. The members will conduct a Special General Meeting on Sunday and the CoA have already informed the BCCI that a unanimous decision needs to be made by all the associations if India is to pull out from the tournament.
Extra Cover: BCCI and OPPO unveil official new Team India jersey
The Details
The tussle with ICC had reached a crescendo after the amount under the new model was slated to be $290 million, down from the $570 million under the previous model. An offer of an additional $100 million was also provided to the BCCI but the board didn't seem too interested in taking it.
Instead, a faction strongly believes that the Members Participation Agreement with the ICC should be revoked, which will rule India out of all ICC tournaments until 2023, the end of the present rights cycle, including the upcoming Champions Trophy.
In an email, the administrators told BCCI joint secretary Amitabh Choudhary: “Please convene a meeting of the selection committee for selecting the squad immediately. The squad can then be submitted to the ICC without prejudice to BCCI's legal rights."
What’s next?
When India announce the squad for the Champions Trophy remains to be seen and the question of whether it will be full-strength or not is what will be on everyone's minds as the tournament draws closer.
Extra Cover: ICC Champions Trophy 2017 Schedule: Full time table with venue ground details, PDF download
Author’s Take
The mere fact that the new jersey was launched in Mumbai is good news for fans who were worried about India’s participation in the Champions Trophy. As the defending champions, it would have been a huge shame if India didn’t take part in the tournament that begins on June 1. After a heated tussle, it looks as though common sense has prevailed at the end of the day.
Brand-new app in a brand-new avatar! Download CricRocket for fast cricket scores, rocket flicks, super notifications and much more! 🚀☄️
