Kolkata, August 28
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) today said only the International Cricket Council (ICC) had the authority to take a final decision on any proposal from cricketers to break the impasse over the controversial sponsorship contract.
Board President Jagmohan Dalmiya said here the BCCI would convey whatever proposal it received from the players to the world cricket’s governing body.
Dalmiya, however, said the board was yet to receive a formal written communication from Indian cricketers in England on their fresh offer to resolve the sponsorship issue.
He said he had telephonic talks on the matter with skipper Saurav Ganguly last night.
“It is an ICC contract. So the
final decision has to be taken by the ICC,” he told PTI here.Dalmiya’s comments meant that the crisis, which might force the board to field a second string team for next month’s Champions Trophy in Sri Lanka, may not be resolved before the crucial ICC Executive board meeting in Dubai this weekend.
“Since the ICC is the author of the document, only it (ICC) can change it. I don’t have any authority. We will do what the ICC tells us,” Dalmiya said. As a possible way out from the current impasse, top Indian cricketers, who had refused to sign the contract, yesterday offered to limit their personal sponsorship commitments for the 18 days of the Champions Trophy.
The board has found itself in a bind over top Indian stars’ refusal to sign the Players’ Terms Forms which bar cricketers from endorsing products potentially in conflict with the interests of official sponsors one month on either side of ICC tournaments.
Players spokesman Ravi Shastri told the media that the
cricketers had decided in the interest of the game to back off for a period of 18 days during the Sri Lanka tournament next month and would speak to their sponsors on television ads.
Dalmiya clarified that contrary to projection in certain quarters, there was no problem between the players and the present board officials.
“We can’t complain about the contract to the ICC because the earlier BCCI regime of A.C. Muttiah and J.Y. Lele had signed the ICC document. Nor can the players be blamed, because the earlier board had kept them in the dark about it,” he said.
“We always had very good relationship with the players,” he said.
Dalmiya claimed he was the first to spot the flaws in the sponsorship agreement signed in May 2001, and had pointed out to the ICC that
the BCCI had no right to prevent a player from fulfilling personal sponsorship commitments.
PTI
