ICC board to discuss World T20, Olympic participation

Issues regarding the upcoming World Twenty20 championship in India and the game's potential participation in the Olympic and Commonwealth Games will be among the key issues on the anvil at the International Cricket Council's (ICC) board meeting here on February 4, an official said on Sunday.

The World T20 is scheduled to be held in India in March-April and the ICC board is expected to discuss playing conditions and prize money among other things regarding the tournament. The game's world governing body is also expected to review the amendments to the ICC constitution which were brought about in 2013. The structure and scheduling of bi-lateral series, composition of the ICC cricket committee will also be looked into, the ICC said in a statement here.

The ICC will also take stock of its initiatives towards popularising the game in the USA and take updates on the United States of America Cricket Association (USACA). The USACA was suspended by the ICC in 2015 based on the findings of a review group it had constituted to look into its status and activities.

According the ICC, the review group had expressed significant concerns about the governance, finance, reputation and cricketing activities of the USACA. The suspension meant the USACA was denied of ICC funding, and ruled it ineligible to determine whether events staged in the USA are given approved status or not. As per the its operating manual, the ICC took over that function.

Despite the ban, the USA national team was allowed to take part in international competition, including the World T20 qualifiers in Ireland and Scotland in July, 2015.

Matters relating to anti-corruption and anti-doping are also scheduled to be discussed at the meeting.

In the lead up to the ICC board meeting, various other committee meetings will also take place. The first of these will be ICC chief executives' committee meeting which will be held on Monday.