ICC postponed the Champions Trophy until next year
August 24, 2008
The International Cricket Council (ICC) Sunday postponed until next year September’s Champions Trophy in Pakistan over security fears.
The move came two days after South Africa refused to send their team, while players’ associations from Australia, New Zealand and England urged their players not to travel to the troubled country over serious security concerns.
The decision to postpone the event was taken after a tele-conference of the ICC executive board in Dubai on Sunday.
In it five of the eight competing teams said they would not be prepared to send players and officials to Pakistan on grounds of safety and security. South Africa led the way on Friday when they announced they would not be sending a team. Australia, England, New Zealand and West Indies were the other countries not prepared to take the necessary risks.
Other options open to the ICC were inviting other countries and continuing with the tournament in Pakistan, or moving it to another country. Each of the alternatives would have created huge problems for cricket’s governing body.
Putting on a tournament without many of the game’s leading names would have created massive issues between the ICC and its broadcasting and sponsorship stakeholders, whilst moving it to Sri Lanka could have caused a potential split in world cricket. Pakistan last week stated that it would refuse to send a team if the tournament was moved to another country.
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