The gloves are off! 'Humiliated' BCCI threatens to pull out of Champions Trophy

BCCI secretary Ajay Shirke has said that the ICC's decision to not include the BCCI in the finance committee meeting held earlier this month in Dubai is “a humiliation”.

“These are the committees where all the important decisions are taken — finance, commerce and chief executives committee; India not having a representative (in those committees) is a humiliation for us. We will tell the ICC, ‘either you amend this or we will decide what to do to protect India’s cricket interests globally’. It could be anything. We may even not play the Champions Trophy. Better sense may prevail, and we may not reach that stage at all. But there are so many options,” Ajay Shirke was quoted as saying by the Indian Express.

This incident is the latest addition to the growing list of complaints that the BCCI has against the ICC, and according to Indian Express' sources, the Indian Board will think on “parallel lines” if these are not amended.

The ICC and the BCCI have been involved in a cold war since the former BCCI chief Shashank Manohar took over at the helm of the sport's governing body and drafted in a lot of changes. The removal of the Big Three revenue model, which ensured that the BCCI, the Australian Board, and the English Board received the bulk of the revenue generated, and the new two-tier system in Test cricket have not gone down well with the BCCI.

“The problem with the ICC now is that it is acting like a dictator. Apart from the Big Three model that the ICC now wants to change, it is slowly trying to keep the BCCI at bay,” said another BCCI official, reported Indian Express.

“Unfortunately, the BCCI is being deprived of a seat in the ICC finance committee. When 70 per cent of the ICC’s income comes from the BCCI, why should we not have a place in the finance committee? There’s no question of domination, but is the ICC trying to be a Robin Hood — robbing the rich and giving it to the poor?” said another BCCI office-bearer, reported Indian Express.

The Indian Board is also unhappy with the ICC's decision to award England a budget of $135 million as organizational cost for the Champions Trophy which will be held in June next year. That amount is almost three fold the amount the BCCI received ($45 million) for organizing the T20 World Cup earlier this year despite the World Cup being a longer tournament.

Shashank Manohar's decision to remove the Big Three model means the BCCI will incur a loss of Rs 100 crore annually over the next nine years, and they are understandably miffed about it.

“The ICC generates a majority of its revenue thanks to Indian cricket, and why should BCCI bear losses of over Rs 900 crore? Thakur has informed the ICC that the board will not change its stand,” said another anonymous BCCI official, reported Indian Express.

It is not a cold war anymore. The gloves are off, and it seems like we are headed for an ugly brawl.