CHENNAI: The big question is if India will take part in the Champions Trophy in June. The ICC seems unfazed by withdrawal threats and feels a solution will be reached. It is understood that an offer of an extra $100 million made by world body chairman Shashank Manohar — which takes BCCI’s share to $390 million — and a decision whether to accept it will be taken at the Indian board’s special general body meeting next week.
On Tuesday, the ICC board voted overwhelmingly in favour of the new revenue model, much to the disbelief of BCCI, which thought it could at least manage the support of Zimbabwe, Bangladesh and West Indies.
Though it appeared all members had ganged up against BCCI, an official present for the meeting in Dubai revealed that Manohar’s offer was still open, although BCCI secretary Amitabh Chowdhary refused it before and after the meeting on Wednesday.
With Chowdhary not ready to settle for less than the $570 million that BCCI has been demanding, Manohar stood his ground.
This newspaper understands that the committee of administrators (CoA) had asked for $445 million as a compromise figure. It was aware that the new model meant a loss of at least $100 million for BCCI, but accepted it after meeting representatives from England, South Africa, West Indies and Bangladesh over the last few months to find a formula to satisfy all members.
“We wanted to get as close to $445 million, which was proposed by the CoA and is what we discussed before arriving in Dubai. Had the ICC made an offer close to it, there would have been room for negotiations. But Manohar was not willing to increase it beyond $390, which is lower than what even the CoA asked for,” a BCCI official part of the Dubai meet told Express on Thursday.
Chowdhary and treasurer Anirudh Chaudhry are scheduled to return to India on Friday and the BCCI will call an SGM after talking to them. It is reliably learned that Manohar might meet the CoA in the coming days with the offer he made and settle for an agreement to make sure India takes part in the CT. Even if members at the SGM unanimously propose pulling out in protest, the CoA will have the final say.
It is also understood that in case BCCI takes the drastic step and doesn’t send its team, other members might rethink about releasing players for the IPL. There are also whispers that some boards might call back their players straight away if BCCI decides to boycott the ICC tournament.
venkatakrishna@newindianexpress.com