Two top International Cricket Council (ICC) officials have recently resigned allegedly because of overspend in putting together the pop-up stadium in New York, which hosted T20 World Cup matches last month; and the ICC Annual Conference starting in Colombo on Friday could be clouded by that development as the apex body meets to discuss the budget for the ICC Champions Trophy to be hosted by Pakistan next year.
The Champions Trophy is making a return to the ICC calendar after a gap of eight years and the budget for the same will be up for approval at the conference. The tournament is scheduled to be held from February 19 to March 9.
According to a Cricbuzz report, "Ankur Khanna, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the ICC, spent three days in Lahore in June working on the budget with Javed Murtuza, the CFO of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), to finalize the financial outlay for the eight-team Champions Trophy".
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah chairs ICC's Finance and Commercial Affairs Committee (F & CA) that will go through the budget plan before it is approved by the ICC Board.
Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi are the three Pakistan cities mentioned in the budget papers as the venues designated to host the tournament. But India playing on Pakistan soil remains a question mark considering the BCCI and Indian government's reservations regarding the team travelling to Pakistan amid strained relations between the two neighbouring countries.
India did not travel to Pakistan for the Asia Cup last year, which forced the tournament to become hybrid and India played all their matches in Sri Lanka. The BCCI have reportedly shown their inclination for the same model to be adopted for the Champions Trophy as well. The final decision on that rests with the ICC.
Meanwhile, the issue of alleged overspend in bringing up the temporary Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York for eight T20 World Cup matches at the venue last month will play in the background at the ICC Annual Conference.
The stadium was dismantled after the last match in New York.
According to Cricbuzz, "Pankaj Khimji, one of the directors, has sent a letter requesting a forensic audit of the expenses associated with the construction of the pop-up stadium in New York, which was dismantled after the completion of the games in the city."
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