ICC hopes that IND v WI T20I grows cricket in the US

The ICC has announced that it had sanctioned the IND v WI T20 international to be played in Florida after the conclusion of the Test series on the 27th and 28th of August. Although the USACA has been suspended from ICC membership in recent times, the sanctioning of a cricketing events or matches lies with the ICC itself. The domestic decisions made by the US Board will be supported by the council in a bid to grow the sport of cricket in the States.

ICC Chief Executive David Richardson said: “The ICC has approved these matches because we believe they can play a significant role in the long-term development of cricket in the USA and our ongoing efforts to unify the USA cricket community.

“Having the ICC World T20 Champions playing India in Florida will undoubtedly inspire both existing and new fans and players, but perhaps more importantly, the sanction fees will be invested into the ICC’s ongoing work to lay a sustainable foundation for the development of cricket in America.

“This, along with ongoing investment from the ICC to help grow the sport in the USA will be used for specific programmes as part of the ICC’s long-term strategic framework in the USA. In line with this strategy, we are working with our stakeholders in the USA on the development of a new constitution and governance structure that the entire USA cricket community can unify behind. We are absolutely focused on creating a sustainable structure to allow cricket to flourish at all levels in the US.”

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Ben Kavenagh, the ICC official responsible for cricketing matters in the Americas went on to illustrate the impact made by the council for the growth of the sport in the United States. “We are working on a number of levels across the sport in the US at the moment including facilitating events such as the ICC World Cricket League tournament that will be held in Los Angeles, as well as the preparation of the US team and the development of facilities.

“We are also focusing on coach education that will support the growth of local systems and we are about to launch an introductory cricket programme across a number of American universities in partnership with NIRSA.

“We will also look to explore how a proportion of the money can be invested locally in Florida around the matches through school and community engagement, but it is important that this is part of a wider plan for cricket there and not just a one-off exercise.”

David Richardson added: “We understand that the USA cricket community is thrilled at the prospect of international cricket being staged in the USA and that this venture has the support of USACA as well as all of our other stakeholders in the USA. We hope this will act as a further catalyst in our attempts to galvanise the governance of the sport in the USA.”

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