A selection of the leading Associate and Affiliate players, led by Ireland captain William Porterfield, will get their chance to compete against England, the No. 1 Test team in the world, next month after it was confirmed they will form part of England's preparations for the Test series against Pakistan in the UAE.

ICC Combined AM XI William Porterfield (captain, Ireland), Saqib Ali (UAE), Kyle Coetzer (Scotland), George Dockrell (Ireland), Majid Haq (Scotland), Hamid Hassan (Afghanistan), Mohammad Nabi (Afghanistan), Boyd Rankin (Ireland), Mohammad Shahzad (Afghanistan), Paul Stirling (Ireland), Christi Viljoen (Namibia) and Craig Williams (Namibia)

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The International Cricket Council has announced the 14-man squads for the six teams – Nigeria, Kuwait, Fiji, Guernsey, Jersey and Malaysia - participating in ICC World Cricket League Division 6 next month in Malaysia.

The finalists of the event, which will be played from 17 to 24 September, will be promoted to ICC World Cricket League Division 5 which will be staged in Singapore in early 2012.

The tournament will be played on three grounds in Kuala Lumpur, Kinrara Oval, Selangor Turf Club and Bayuemas Oval. These venues were also used for the ICC U-19 Cricket World Cup which was held in Malaysia in 2009.

The full squads are as follows:

Fiji: Joe Rika (captain), Viliame Yabaki, Iniasi Cakacaka, Sakaraia Lomani, Kitione Tavo, Sekove Ravoka, Jikoi Kida, Colin Rika, Waisake Tukana, Josefa Baleicicia, Tasheed Tawheed, Maciu Gauna, Joji Bulabalavu, Mohammed Khan.

Guernsey: Stuart Le Provost (captain), Gary Rich, Tom Kimber, Jeremy Frith, James Nussbaumer, Ben Ferbrache, David Hooper, Tim Ravenscroft, Ross Kneller, Chris van Vliet, Stuart Bisson, Lee Savident, Adam Martel, GH Smit

Jersey: Peter Gough (captain), Ed Farley, Thomas Minty, Sam de la Haye, Charles Perchard, James Faudemer, Ben Stevens, Anthony Hawkins-Kay, Ben Silva, Dean Morrison, Alex Cooke, Paul Connolly, Corey Bisson, Daniel Garton

Kuwait: Hisham Mirza (captain), Sibtain Raza, Muhammad Amin, Abid Mushtaq, Aamir Javed, Irfan Bhatti, Ahsan Naseer, Azmatullah Nazeer, Abdullah, Mohammad Murad, Sharjeel Tahir, Jagath Roshantha, Saud Qamar

Malaysia: Suhan Kumar Alagaratanam (captain), Sureah Navaratnam, Rakesh Madhavan, Hammad Ullah Khan, Hassan Ghulam Muhammad, Ahmad Faiz Noor, Shukri Abdul Rahim, Eszrafiq Azis, Abdul Rashid Ahad, Shafiq Sharf, Faris Almas-Lee Rosmanizam, Aminudin Ramly, Shahrulnizam Yusof, Hiran Brahman Ralalage

Nigeria: Endurance Ofem (captain), Ademola Onikoya, Obejide Bejide, Varun Behani, Chukwu James, Ramit Gill, Joshua Ogunlola, Saheed Akolade, Segun Olayinka, Chibuike Iteogu, Seun Odeku, Lekan Awolowo, Seye Olympio, Kunle Adegbola

The full schedule for WCL Div. 6 is as follows:

Fixtures

15 September – Team Arrivals
16 September – Practice
17 September – Guernsey v Jersey (Kinrara Oval), Malaysia v Kuwait (Selangor Turf Club), Fiji v Nigeria (Bayuemas Oval)
18 September – Malaysia v Nigeria (Kinrara Oval), Kuwait v Jersey (Selangor Turf Club), Guernsey v Fiji (Bayuemas Oval)
19 September – Reserve Day
20 September – Malaysia v Fiji (Kinrara Oval), Jersey v Nigeria (Selangor Turf Club), Kuwait v Guernsey (Bayuemas Oval)
21 September – Fiji v Kuwait (Kinrara Oval), Nigeria v Guernsey (Selangor Turf Club), Malaysia v Jersey (Bayuemas Oval)
22 September – Reserve Day
23 September – Malaysia v Guernsey (Kinrara Oval), Jersey v Fiji (Selangor Turf Club), Nigeria v Kuwait (Bayuemas Oval)
24 September – Final (Kinrara Oval), 3rd/4th Play-off (Selangor Turf Club), 5th/6th Play-off (Bayuemas Oval)

The ICC has announced that umpires Theunis van Schalkwyk (Namibia), Courtney Young (Cayman Islands), Mark Hawthorne (Ireland) and Richard Smith (Cyprus) have been added to the ICC Associate and Affiliate International Umpires panel following the annual review and selection process.

The four new umpires have replaced Subhash Modi of Kenya, who retired earlier this month after umpiring in international cricket for nine years, Paul Baldwin of Germany, who has resigned following his selection in the ECB reserve umpires' panel for the second successive year, and Karran Bayney, who has failed to retain his position. An additional umpire in the Europe Region was also appointed following a request by the region to meet its growing needs and requirements.

The umpires on the ICC Associate and Affiliate International Umpires panel can be assigned to ODIs and T20I matches involving Associates and Affiliates Members as well as officiate in Under-19 and women's cricket.

ICC Associate and Affiliate International Umpires panel 2011

Africa - Jeff Luck (Namibia), Theunis van Schalkwyk (Namibia)

Americas - Roger Dill (Bermuda), Courtney Young (Cayman Islands)

Asia - Buddhi Pradhan (Nepal), Sarika Prasad (Singapore)

East Asia Pacific - Shahul Hameed (Indonesia)

Europe - Niels Bagh (Denmark), Mark Hawthorne (Ireland), Ian Ramage (Scotland), Richard Smith (Cyprus)

Despite unfounded scaremongering among some sections of the media, the ICC has announced details of the sixth staging of the Intercontinental Cup, running from May 2011 through to December 2012.

As expected, Zimbabwe will not field a side – its participation in the just-completed tournament was of mixed benefit, finishing in farce when they forfeited their final match against Scotland.

The promotion from the World Cricket League into the Intercontinental Cup is a welcome move, allowing a chance for any team to rise through the ranks as Afghanistan have done with such great success.

The one casualty is the Intercontinental Shield, but few outside holders Namibia will mourn its demise. Such was the event’s profile, it is unlikely if most people even knew of its existence.

Associate 1 Full Member 0: A sight we might not see again after 2011 ... Irish players celebrate beating Bangladesh at the 2007 World Cup with a victory lap © Getty Images

The recent announcement of a restructuring of the bloated international calendar by the ICC was an opportunity to restore sanity to the world game. Instead, all it has confirmed is that the battle within the ICC between the money men and those with a genuine interest in the world game is over. As expected, the bean counters have won.

The 2015 World Cup will have 10 teams, and while ICC officials say that no final decision has been taken on how these teams will be selected and that there might be still be a chance for Associate members to participate through a qualifying tournament, there is little likelihood of this materialising.

The working party that made the recommendations was made up of David Collier (England), James Sutherland (Australia) and N Srinivasan (India) with no Associate representation, and only David Richardson of the ICC there as anyone remotely independent. With a sub-committee like that it's no wonder this decision was reached.

The headline news regards the World Cup, a distended tournament, which, lest we forget, was brought to its knees in the Caribbean in 2007 largely as a consequence of the ICC's dreadful management. Instead of tackling the root causes of the malaise the ICC simply culled four of the six Associates to ensure there could be no repeat of the commercial disaster that came from India's early exit.

In 2015 the ICC will go a step further and remove the Associates altogether. While fans might have hoped this will mean a leaner event, the depressing news is it won't. The reality is that the number of matches will come down by one, from 49 to 48. But there will be more cheer for the commercial arm of the ICC because there will be more games involving the lucrative teams.

In a bid to deflect flak, the ICC claims no decision has been made about the structure of the 2015 World Cup, offering a flickering hope of a qualifying tournament that might allow Associates to win through to the finals. Sadly this just won't happen. It appears a stalling exercise to assuage critics until the dust has settled.

When I raised qualification involving Full Members as a possible suggestion a few years ago, at the time Zimbabwe cricket was imploding, I was told by a senior ICC official it would never happen. The reasons, he said, were two-fold.

Firstly, the Full Members would never agree to a structure that could result in them missing out. In a straight qualifying competition involving countries at the bottom of the ODI table, at least three Full Members could quite realistically be beaten by leading Associates and so miss out on the World Cup. While financially the ICC would ensure they would not lose money - for example, India's and Zimbabwe's earnings from the 2007 competition were massively more than Ireland's, though the first two made early exits and Ireland made the Super Eights - the implications for sponsorship and local exposure would be considerable.

While it seems a ludicrous suggestion at the moment, India were as recently as 2005 eighth in the ICC's ODI rankings. It is possible that by 2015 a major country could again be out of form and risk getting sucked into a qualifying event.

Given pressure from within the ICC as well as from media partners, who signed a colossal TV rights deal, led to a restructuring of the 2011 competition, neither would be willing to accept anything that might, however remotely, risk the commercial appeal of the World Cup, especially in the massive subcontinental market.

So for all the rhetoric about expanding the game - and to be fair here, there are many within the ICC who genuinely believe in this vision - a glass ceiling has been lowered into place, which ensures Associates will probably not be able to play again at a full World Cup.

In defence of the ICC, six Associates, as was the case in 2007, was too many. While Ireland made the headlines, others, including Kenya and the dismal Bermudans, were totally outclassed. A qualifying system between the top Associates and the worst Full Members would be fairer and would have also ensured the competition could genuinely be called a World Cup.

The two small pluses are that the emergence of Twenty20 means the Twenty20 World Cup, generously expanded to 16 teams, will give Associates a chance to bloody a few noses every couple of years. But the top Associates have not welcomed this, as it all but ensures their remote chances of attaining Test status, which could only come through impressive performances in 50-over games, disappeared. The other gain is that the unloved Champions Trophy might be consigned to the dustbin.

The only way Associates might return is if those controlling the finances stop pretending and just state that certain countries - probably no more than three or four - have to play in any tournament, leaving the rest to scrap among themselves for the other places. At least it would be more honest than the situation we have at the moment.

The Associates have been fighting a battle for recognition they were never likely to win. For all the pretence of the ICC being a democratic organisation, most people know the game is now run by three countries who are hellbent on keeping an increasing share of the pot between themselves. However much they might claim to have the interests of cricket at heart, the revamping of the World Cup has exposed that as a sham.

News that the ICC has approved a reduction in the number of teams at the 50-over World Cup and an enlarged World Twenty20 event has caused a predictable storm of protest from some quarters.

But the ICC has been vague about what a ten-country World Cup this means. It has not ruled out Associates taking part but as that would mean a qualifying event, it seems unlikely. But for now, we can only wait.

As some kind of sweetner, the World Twenty20 event will be expanded to 16 teams from the 2012 tournament. The success of smaller nations like Netherlands and Afghanistan in Twenty20 cricket prompted the expansion of the tournament, which will continue to have the women's event played alongside it.

What most people agree on is that the current World Cup is overly bloated. But will the ICC be forced by its more powerful members to ditch the concept that the tournament is genuinely open to all and just ensure the cosy club run by the Full Members becomes even cosier?

The ICC has dismissed criticism it was too slow to react to the crowd trouble which marred the match between Nepal and USA in Kirtipur in the ICC World Cricket League Division 5 tournament.

The ICC was roundly attacked for its seemingly slow response, not announcing an investigation until two days after the end of the tournament, but it has told Cricinfo the process was started in the immediate aftermath of the game. The next stage is the findings of the investigation will be delivered to the board who will deliberate what to do when they meet in Dubai in April.

The ICC is in a difficult position. If it fails to act then there is a danger it sets a precedent for crowds to disrupt matches if doing so will benefit their side. Against that, it will not want to
stamp down to heavily on a country where cricket has really taken hold.

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The ICC has agreed to demands from Singapore that it look into events surrounding the ICC World Cricket League Division 5 match between Nepal and USA in Kirtipur which was marred by serious crowd trouble.

Singapore argue that Nepal only qualified for the final and so gained promotion as a result of the disruption. Until the stoppage, Singapore looked set to edge them out on net run-rate, but, so they argue, the revised target agreed by the ICC technical committee altered the equation in Nepal’s favour and they edged through by 0.0035.

The ICC, who dismissed initial complaints, belatedly decided to look into the complaint, which centres on the decisions of the technical committee. Nevertheless, it seems bewildering an immediate investigation was not launched into the riot itself.

It may help Singapore’s efforts that Imran Khwaja, chairman of the Singapore Cricket Association, is one the ICC executive committee, although insider said there was little chance of the ICC reversing the technical committee’s decision. “They will do what they always do in this kind of situation – nothing.”

An editorial in the Straits Times, was highly critical of the ICC. “Nepali fans are known to run riot when their team are losing. But is it Singapore’s fault that security measures at the Tribhuvan University ground in Kathmandu were inadequate to stop around 5,000 of them from throwing stones and invading the ground for nearly an hour? The ICC’s silence is deafening.”

The round-robin match was delayed for around 45 minutes after sections of the 12,000-strong crowd started to throw rocks and debris onto the outfield. Trouble had been brewing for some time as USA cruised towards an easy victory over the hosts, and riot police were already in situ when things got nasty.

While most people headed at speed for the exits and the teams fled from the field, a hard core of spectators continued to hurl anything they could grab hold of onto the playing area. Some reports suggested tear gas was fired into the stands.

Eventually order was restored, and as police cleared the rubbish from the outfield using wheelbarrows, the ICC technical committee deliberated as to whether to continue the game or abandon it and award the win to the USA. In the end, a Duckworth-Lewis revised target of seven from 14 overs was agreed on and the match ended quickly and in relative calm.

The leading Associates’ itineraries for the first six months of 2010 have been announced by the ICC, and once again they show the difficulty faced by the boards to secure fixtures against Full Members.

Canada
They arrive in Sri Lanka next week for almost three weeks of preparations ahead of the ICC World Cup Twenty20 Qualifier, and their time there includes a short Twenty20 series involving Afghanistan and Ireland. After the T20 Qualifiers they remain in the UAE where they again meet Afghanistan, this time in two ODIs, followed by an Intercontinental Cup tie.

They are scheduled to be in Jamaica on early April to play an ODI and T20 game against West Indies. In May, they take part in the Americas Division One competition in Bermuda.

As with all sides in the T20 Qualifiers, if they make it through to the main tournament they will be in the USA at a training camp from April 18 to 23 with the event in the Caribbean following on.

Ireland

Like Canada, they kick off in Sri Lanka, albeit for a fortnight, during which time they play Afghanistan in the Intercontinental Cup before heading to the UAE for the T20 Qualifiers. In early April they too will be in Jamaica, playing a four-dayer against the national side and then one ODI and three Twenty20s against West Indies.

When they return to home they have an ODI against Australia in Belfast on June 17 but will not be involved in any of English cricket’s domestic competitions after opting not to accept the ECB’s invitation.

Kenya

While the main tournament is the T20 Qualifiers, there are two Intercontinental Cup matches against Scotland (January 25-28) and Netherlands (February 20-23).

The Scotland match is followed by a Twenty20 tri-series between the two and Uganda, while the Netherlands game is followed by two ODIs.

Netherlands

The Dutch have opted to prepare for the T20 Qualifiers in India, travelling to Kenya after the competition (see above). From April 15 they have a busy itinerary with matches in England’s new 40-over competition, their invitation coming as a result of the Irish’s absence.

On June 10 they host Scotland in the Intercontinental Cup and then play them in a one-off ODI.

Scotland

The Intercontinental Cup game in Nairobi is preceded by a few days in Kenya and then the T20 tri-series also involving Uganda.

They too are in the English 40-over competition before meeting Netherlands in the Intercontinental Cup. A one-off ODI against England takes place in Edinburgh on June 19.

Afghanistan

After time a busy time in Sri Lanka (see above) where they will also play Sri Lanka A in T20 and limited-overs matches, they meet Canada in two ODIs and an Intercontinental Cup game in Dubai after the T20 Qualifiers. After that, at present they have nothing else arranged.

The ICC has announced the remaining fixtures in the inaugural Intercontinental Shield, the second tier first-class competition for Associates.

The one remaining match this year sees Namibia host UAE from December 8, and then UAE have a home tie against Uganda starting on January 20. In April Namibia take on Bermuda, in June Bermuda host UAE and next September Uganda are at home to Namibia in the final round-robin match. The final will be played in Dubai between November 25 and 28, 2010.

However, there is little at stake as the ICC has decided that there will be no promotion between the Intercontinental Shield and the senior Intercontinental Cup.

The ICC has confirmed the groups for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011. Canada and Kenya will play in Group A where they will face Australia, Pakistan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe, while Ireland and Netherlands are drawn alongside India, South Africa, England, West Indies and Bangladesh in what on current rankings has to be the easier group.

The ICC has been coming in for a fair amount of sniping of late as a result of teams being unable to take part in its events because of issues with visas. This is not about the game’s big boys, but Associates and Affiliates competing in lower-level tournaments.

Last month Sierra Leone were unable to take part in the ICC Under-19 World Cup Qualifiers because they could not obtain visas from the Canadian consulate in time; last week Morocco failed to make it to Malawi for a World Cricket League commitment after falling foul of officialdom in Qatar.

There have been those who have heaped the blame on the ICC. It should, so their argument goes, ensure this does not happen and put pressure on the various countries hosting events to, in some way, bypass the usual rules and regulations. It’s almost as if cricket is a special case.

The same people who were lambasting the ICC for not ensuring Sierra Leone were able to play in Canada have been quiet over the fact that almost a dozen players from Afghanistan and Uganda took the opportunity of playing in Toronto to abscond and seek political asylum. All those individuals have done is ensure it will be even harder for players for some countries to take part in future events.

In fairness, the ICC has not helped itself in the past with its posturing when the British government barred Zimbabwe officials. But that was a bigger fish in a bigger pond.

The reality here is it is down to each country to ensure its own arrangements are in place. It cannot be the responsibility of the ICC to chase up every visa application and transit visa to make sure they are all in order. It is not - and should not be - the job of the ICC, or any sporting body, to tell countries who they should let in or not.

The boards get good money from the ICC and it is not unreasonable to expect those boards to show a higher degree of professionalism in the way they handle things. Too often, sides are selected at the last minute, paperwork is left until far too late in the day, and officials are happy to heap the blame on embassies and consulates.

I chased up one such instance not too long ago where a board was making a great song and dance about visa delays meaning it was shut out of an event. It turned out that it had spoken to the embassy months before the event and been given clear guidelines, including the key one that it needed 14 working days for visas to be processed. In the event, the applications - more than half of which were wrongly completed - were submitted five days before they were needed. There are two sides to every story.

In short, some boards need to be more professional and to take responsibility for their own affairs. Most manage it quietly and efficiently. It is not for the ICC to mollycoddle the few who can’t get their acts together. Martin Williamson

Uganda’s coach at the recent ICC Under-19 World Cup Qualifiers has said the ICC needs to look at where events are staged if players are to be discouraged from jumping ship and seeking political asylum.

Sam Walusimbi was speaking following the disappearance of six of the Uganda squad who remained behind in Toronto when the remainder of the team flew back home. There whereabouts remains unknown, as does that of five of the Afghanistan squad who also went into hiding.

“The ICC may have to re-think where such qualifiers are hosted,” Walusimbi told Uganda’s Observer newspaper. “When we went to Sri-Lanka, no players disappeared. I guess qualifiers should be in less developed countries.”

Earlier this week an ICC spokesman told Cricinfo: "[It] is the responsibility of each of those members. It is also the responsibility of those members to have knowledge of each of their players and their likely behaviour."

Walusimbi also said the onus was on the board to pick players who were less likely to use a tournament as an excuse to seek political asylum. “If you are to assess the players that didn’t return with us as planned, they’ve all dropped out of school if I’m not mistaken. They looked at Canada as a lifetime opportunity to improve their lives, which I think they didn’t envision here. They had nothing to lose if they stayed abroad but all to gain. That’s my feeling but I guess the players are in better position to explain their move.

“One lesson we’ve learned is the kind of players we have to pick in the future teams; the kind we are sure have a stake here at home to protect and so can’t run away.”

He admitted the loss of the six was a major blow to future plans. “The sudden loss of players is never good. It affects your plans and as far as I am concerned, I thought some of these lads were going to graduate to the senior team. It’s difficult to develop a player in cricket. Nevertheless, although it’s a big blow, we’ll build other players, I guarantee.”

An ICC spokesman has criticised players from Afghanistan and Uganda who absconded at the end of the recent ICC Under-19 World Cup Qualifiers in Toronto, and who are believed to be looking to claim asylum in Canada.

Reacting to concerns that the players' action will have a detrimental effect on future tournaments, a spokesman told Cricinfo: "The ICC does not condone the act of players absconding during or after playing in an overseas tournament. Such an action does not benefit anyone: it affects the member from whom the players come as it means it is weaker for subsequent events.

"It affects the country where they come from as it damages its reputation and, potentially at least, makes it harder for nationals and players without intentions to remain in a country illegally to obtain travel documents in the future; and it damages the reputation of cricket. Even those that abscond are potentially worse off as they become illegal within that country."

There has been growing concern that the recent defections will make it harder for players from some countries to obtain visas for future events. "The ICC does not play a role in obtaining visas for member boards," the spokesman said. "That is the responsibility of each of those members. It is also the responsibility of those members to have knowledge of each of their players and their likely behaviour."

Asked if the ICC might take a more hands-on role in such matters, the spokesman said it was not for the ICC to interfere in the way that teams are selected. "The ICC does not seek to vet, to approve or disapprove of any selections of players for any teams and that has to be correct; each member is free to select whoever it sees fit."

An interesting article on Cricket Europe website regarding the ongoing debate surrounding Associates and Affiliates whose national sides are made up of more expats – usually from Asia or the Caribbean – that home-grown players.

It cites Norway as one of the worst examples – not one of the national side is Norwegian born – and if teams were limited to only five players who qualified through the ICC’s generous residency rules, then the Middle East would go from being an up-and-coming force to being wiped off the map.

It is only to be expected that on cricket’s frontiers, ex-pats will sow the seeds of a growing sport. But they must show willing to develop the sport beyond their enclaves and introduce locals both to the game and to national representation, even if this may, at least in the short term, have a detrimental impact on results.

The article cites the example of Japan, who have imposed their own quotas on the number of home-grown players, but the ICC has shown an unwillingness to tackle the problem. Cricinfo has made more than one request to establish how many players in a side have qualified through residency but such questions rarely produce the requisite answer.

There were smiles all around the Hong Kong camp at the Maple Leaf North-West Ground despite ending up on the losing side. Hong Kong managed to qualify for the ICC Under-19 World Cup on the basis of a superior net run-rate and in the process managed to edge out Netherlands and Uganda - who were all tied on points before this game - with one qualifying spot at stake. They lost narrowly by one wicket on Friday against USA - a thrilling last-ball finish - but that was enough to see them through to the World Cup finals.

Click here for the full final-day report

A dramatic day at the ICC Under-19 World Cup Qualifier in Toronto on Friday set up a fascinating finish with three teams competing for the final qualification spot separated only by net run-rate.

Netherlands, Uganda and Hong Kong are all tied on six points. Netherlands will face Papua New Guinea and Hong Kong will take on the USA on the final day on Sunday - Saturday is a rest day - while Uganda will anxiously wait for the results of these two matches to know about their fate after having already played their nine matches.

Click here for Cricinfo's full coverage of the tournament

Sierra Leone’s flickering hopes of taking part in the Under-19 World Cup were finally ended when they failed to arrive in Canada before the expiry of the ICC’s September 5 deadline. As a result they were kicked out of a tournament they had done so well to qualify for.

While officially it is said that visa applications for the squad were submitted too late, it is being reported in local newspapers that their non arrival was caused by the refusal by the Canadian consulate in Ghana to issue visas on the grounds there was concern that some of the players would not be willing to return home at the end of the competition. Two Ugandan players sought political asylum after being granted visas to play in an ICC tournament in Australia in 2007, and since then it has proved much harder for some teams to get the documentation necessary for them to play in events.

Afghanistan also had issues with entry visas and arrived in Canada the day after the tournament started, but they have been able to honour all their fixtures.

With Kenya, Africa’s leading Associate side, already in effect barred from the competition after the ICC controversially withdrew their rights to host the 2010 U-19 World Cup, that leaves Uganda, who have struggled to make their mark, as the continent’s only country in the qualifying competition.

In the aftermath of the ICC’s controversial decision to strip Kenya of the rights to host the 2010 Under-19 World Cup, one of Kenya’s main newspapers has wasted no time to stick the knife into a board it has been willing to attack at every opportunity.

In the Standard on Monday, it was claimed that the ICC’s decision had cost Kenya “between US$7 and US$8 million”. Even a basic knowledge of the event would have shown that no board makes cash from hosting such a tournament. The TV rights are already onsold by the ICC, and while the direct costs of hosting (accommodation/transport etc) are picked up by the ICC, any surplus is also kept by them. The country staging the event only gets a hosting fee of around US$250,000.

A day later and a report claimed Cricket Kenya “went to sleep” after securing hosting rights to this tournament in 2006 and that was incapable of working to a “set timetable”. Again, had it bothered to ask the executive, it would have established how much was actually done.

At best this is sloppy reporting. But given what has happened before, there is a suspicion that it was the latest salvo in a long-running campaign to discredit the board.

Ireland completed a 3-0 series win against Kenya in Dublin which sees them move above Zimbabwe into tenth in the ICC’s ODI rankings. Ireland have a rating of 26, three ahead of Zimbabwe (23) and 20 behind ninth-placed Bangladesh (46).

Zimbabwe host Bangladesh next month in a four-match series and can move back into tenth if they win the series.

Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of Cricket Ireland, has launched a stinging attack on the ICC and the way it handles cricket below Test level.

The ICC has sunk millions of pounds into Associate and Affiliate cricket, and established several global competitions, but speaking to the Wisden Cricketer, Deutrom was unimpressed.

“What is the point of Associate cricket?” he said. “Ireland has proved itself head and shoulders above the rest of the Associate nations, winning all the available titles in every form of the game – four-day, 50-over and Twenty20. Yet we are bumping up against a glass ceiling. What does the ICC want us to do? How do we get from high-performance programme to the higher echelons of the world game? There is no road map for us. The issue brings to question the whole mission statement of the ICC High Performance programme: what is it preparing teams for?”

Deutrom has made no secret of his ambition to see Ireland play Test cricket, but he admitted there was little prospect of that happening in the near future. And, without that goal, he concluded, what was the point of the Associate merry-go-round.

“Three or four years from now there will be no new entrants in to the cosy club of full Test members. That is a significant frustration. It shows that despite the massive investment in the Associate programme, costing over £200 million over seven years, there is no stepping stone from No.1 of the Associate countries, into the Test world.

“Inclusion in the Future Tours programme gives guaranteed fixtures, which allows the CI board to put together a commercial package with some certainty. This makes it interesting for broadcasters, and then sponsors, ticketing and hospitality. Currently, we don’t know what next year’s fixtures are going to be. We are not saying that Ireland deserves to be a Test nation tomorrow but what steps do we need to take to get there?”

In a separate conversation, Deutrom told Cricinfo: “We are all aware that there is no established pathway to Test cricket for Associates, and ascension to the Full Member ranks by (for example) Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh appears to have happened rather haphazardly. For me, having top Associates playing the bottom-ranked Test teams is pure common sense and the first step in breaching the glass ceiling separating the Full Member and Associate world.”

The ability of sporting bodies to hype their own products should never be underestimated. Rarely does an event seem to pass without it being heralded as the “most watched” in history.

In 2007, the organisers of F1 claimed a global audience of several squillion before someone noted that appeared to assume that everyone in China watched the brief clips on the evening news rather than sat glued to the entire race.

Now Stephen Brenkley in the Independent has pulled up the ICC. Earlier this week it gushed that the World Twenty20 will be seen in 218 countries around the world. He noted that there are only 194 recognised countries on the planet.

Perhaps any readers in Burkina Faso or Tuvalu would let us know how they are enjoying the event?

Laurie Peters, Namibia’s chief executive, has called the ICC’s decision to restructure the Intercontinental Cup as “disappointing” and said that it will have a negative affect on cricket in the country.

Last month, Namibia finished eighth in the ICC World Cup Qualifiers which should have been enough to secure them a place in the 2009-10 Intercontinental Cup. But at an ICC development committee meeting earlier this week, the competition was restructured and Namibia, who finished runners-up in the 2007-08 event, were demoted to a four-team second division known as the Intercontinental Shield. A further blow was that the ICC ruled out any promotion or relegation between the divisions.

“It’s disappointing, and I not only see this as a Namibia issue but a development one in its entirety,” Peters told Cricinfo. “The ICC are all excited that there are now ten [Associate] countries competing against eight previously. One has to ask is this an extension of the competition … what competition? The four countries competing in the Shield will have three matches each and not even the incentive of a promotion-relegation match.

“Previously, eight countries participated. Should Zimbabwe decide to compete why not then have six in the Cup, and five in the Shield, with the opportunity at least one more game plus a promotion/relegation match.

“It’s important that the top Associate countries compete against the Full Members to prove that there is improvement and progress. However, the fact [Zimbabwe are] brought in the Intercontinental Cup at the expense of an Associate is very disappointing and sad for development.”

Peters was also worried that much of the development work inside Namibia would be undermined. “This will have its repercussions. The previous Intercontinental Cup raised a great amount of awareness, excitement and interest in our country. The final of the Intercontinental Cup had flashes and updates on four radio stations every five minutes.
Suddenly cricket had a following amongst the local people that was there never before.”

He was also worried that there would be much less cricket for the national team against lower-profile opponents. In 2007-08 Namibia played seven Intercontinental Cup group games plus a final. This time round, they will have three matches against Bermuda, Uganda and UAE, with the possibility that only one will be at home.

“[It does] nothing to raise awareness and interest and serve the development of cricket,” Peters said. “This is a backward step in itself. Our sponsors have been wonderful over the past years but it will have be ‘wait and see’ as to the effect on our sponsorship.”

The United Arab Emirates will host the ICC World Twenty20 2010 Qualifier later this year. The event, which is currently scheduled to take place in late October, will also be expanded from its previous staging, in Ireland in 2008.

In addition to featuring the six Associate and Affiliate teams with ODI status - Ireland, Canada, Kenya, the Netherlands, Afghanistan and Scotland - it will also include the host team and the United States of America (USA).

The top two sides from the tournament will go forward to join the 10 ICC Full Members in next year's main event, set to take place in the West Indies in April and May at three locations - Barbados, Guyana and St Lucia.

These decisions were made by the ICC Development Committee, which has been meeting this week in Dubai.

"I am thrilled that the ICC Development Committee has again taken an expansive and innovative approach to promoting our great sport by inviting the UAE and USA to join the top six Associate and Affiliate teams at the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier later this year," said ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat. "The committee has given the chance for the top six Associate and Affiliate teams to qualify for the ICC World Twenty20, something they had the chance to do in the equivalent event in Ireland last year, while, at the same time, creating two additional invitational slots for this event."

The ICC has thrown the USA an unexpected lifeline by inviting them to take part in the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifiers in the UAE later this year.

After several years of infighting, including two periods where the USA Cricket Association was actually suspended by the ICC, the team currently languishes in the lower regions of world cricket.

However, the ICC's development committee decided to fast-track the team into the Qualifiers which features the six Associates with ODI status alongside hosts UAE. This will be greeted with anger by the many countries above the USA in the global pecking order, not least Namibia, the Associate on the periphery of joining the top six, who have been hit below the belt for the second time in as many days.

On Tuesday, they were excluded from the top flight of the Intercontinental Cup after the ICC decided to restructure the competition, partially to accommodate Zimbabwe, and now they find that they have been leapfrogged by the USA.

"For the USA the tournament represents a wonderful opportunity to move towards a brighter future and exploit its potential after a period on the fringes following previous suspensions and demotions because of administrative issues," explained Haroon Lorgat, the ICC's chief executive. "The ICC has strategic plans to target and strengthen the game in potential growth markets and the USA, with its player base, development potential and cricket broadcast interest, now backed with a new professional administration set-up, has obvious potential in all these areas."

Lorgat's comments suggested that the decision owed little to cricketing credentials and almost everything to commercial and marketing opportunities. How that will sit with other Associates remains to be seen. The last global event USA participated in was the ICC World Cricket League Division 5 in May 2008 when they lost to Jersey in the semi-finals.

"Twenty20 is the perfect vehicle for cricket to excite the USA and the carrot for its players and administrators is that a top-two finish will earn it a place in the main event which is to be held in its own region."

Countries who receive ICC monies but do not field a national side could lose out as the whole way that Associates and Affiliates are funded.

Until now, once a country gained such status its board merely had to show that it functioned to continue receiving annual payments, But as the sums involved grow, the ICC has decided to raise the bar in terms of what they are expected to do and to enforce its own rules more strictly.

If countries do not put out a national side then they will be put on notice at this year's ICC AGM in June, and if the situation remains unremedied they face being suspended in 2011. That gives them three years to correct the situation.

Despite some negative coverage in some sections of the media, the ICC was adamant that it was the right action to take. "Why would an international sporting federation want - or want to significantly invest in - members that can't even field a national team in the international competition opportunities that it facilitates?" an ICC spokesman told Cricinfo.

"With the increase in funding levels (approximately US$300 million over the next eight years) to Associates and Affiliates, we are looking to our members to put plans in place that enable them to develop and one of the planks of any plan would be to give people, especially the best players, within their constituencies an incentive to stay involved and reach the best level they can - and one way to do that is to have a national team.

"We've seen the positive effect national competition can have on members like Uganda and Afghanistan and with those additional funds and our desire to ensure all members have plans in place to use them, there's now going to be much less excuse for members not to put the programmes in place"

The reality is that the ICC has always been able to take this course of action, but now that it has established a World Cup qualifying system right down to the smallest countries, the failure of some to raise a national team while still collecting the same rewards as those who do has become more apparent.

And contrary to what some have claimed, it is not a new rule but merely a more rigid enforcement of an existing one.

ICC Europe has announced the regional winners of the ICC Development Programme Awards for 2008.

Cricket Scotland was awarded Best Overall Cricket Development Programme for its multi-faceted approach to growing the game at a community and national level. One of the key initiatives staged in 2008 included a national pilot programme to improve the way cricket is introduced to children in the primary school environment. Due to the success of the pilot programme, 18,000 children were introduced to the game by primary school teachers, an increase of 10% on 2007, with a staged roll-out now in the planning for 2009-10. Cricket Scotland’s Coach Education Programme also enabled more than 100 coaches around the country to achieve a formal ECB coaching qualification, whilst the continuing development of activity centres offering weekly coaching sessions for girls, regional academy and scholarship schemes, and the TOPClub junior programme also highlighted Cricket Scotland’s wide breadth of development activities.

“With such a varied programme of activities and proven results, Cricket Scotland is a worthy winner of this coveted award. What is encouraging is that each year Cricket Scotland proposes and actions new and different cricket development initiatives - an achievement which ultimately benefits the sport and its players at all levels,” said Richard Holdsworth, ICC regional development manager - Europe.

Cricket Ireland was awarded Best Women’s Cricket Initiative for their Leinster and Irish Women’s Cricket forum. Organised by Siobhan McBennett and Catherine Goodman, the forum saw Ireland players, coaches and volunteers attend a highly interactive workshop session aimed at identifying a range of critical issues for women’s cricket nationally. Key outcomes from the forum were fed in to the Cricket Ireland Irish High Performance plan 2008-2015 and have already resulted in an increase in funding towards the women’s game this year.

Winner of the Best Junior Cricket Initiative Award was the Finnish Cricket Association (FCA) for their Junior Girls UK Tour and associated cricket training camps and schools programme in Finland. The vision and enthusiasm of FCA Cricket Development Officer, Maija Scamans, in driving this project forward stood out amongst the entries this year.

The Spirit of Cricket Award was awarded to the Jersey Cricket Board for bringing the game and spirit of cricket to a group of young offenders in Jersey’s prison in May 2008. Jersey also won the Best Cricket Promotion and Marketing Award for their efforts in promoting the ICC World Cricket League Division 5 tournament held on the Island.

The Photo of the Year was taken by Barry Chambers of Ireland. A very unique entry, Barry’s photo montage captures Mahaboob Alam of Nepal taking all ten wickets during the ICC World Cricket League Division 5 match against Mozambique in Jersey in June 2008. The montage was presented to Alam at the end of the tournament to commemorate his exceptional achievement; however Barry’s ability to capture each and every wicket was also a remarkable achievement in itself - a key reason why Barry was selected as the worthy winner of this category.

Timothy Belton of Guernsey was awarded Volunteer of the Year for his services to the Guernsey Cricket Development Programme. A chartered surveyor by trade, Tim coaches over 100 hours during the winter programme working with players of all ages and abilities. During the summer he gives over ten hours per week and accompanies the Under-12 and Under-13 squad to over 20 matches both on and off the Island whilst also running cricket sessions for his local school.

The prestigious Lifetime Service Award was awarded to Tom Finlayson MBE of Gibraltar Cricket Association (GCA). Since returning to the country in 1982 after a teaching career in the UK, Tom has been fully involved in the game at all levels. Tom not only introduced the game to and coached a generation of players but he also represented the country internationally. Throughout the years Tom has been responsible for arranging tours and also became the Secretary of the GCA, a post which he held for 18 years before becoming chairman, an appointment he maintains to this day.

“Tom Finlayson has for many years been the ambassador for Gibraltar Cricket and for the game as a whole. His unwavering dedication to the sport can only be described as an inspiration to many. We congratulate Tom on his well deserved honour and can only assume that this award will only inspire him to devote more time and energy to the game he loves,” said Holdsworth.

Three ODI venues are among the nine set to host the ICC World Cup Qualifiers in South Africa, according to the schedule released for the 12-team tournament from April 1 to 19. Willowmoore Park in Benoni and Senwes Park in Potchefstroom will be used for first-round and Super Eight matches, while the final will be held at Centurion's SuperSport Park.

Fifty-four matches during the 19-day tournament will determine the four qualifiers to join the ten Full Members at the 2011 World Cup in the subcontinent. "It looks like it's going to be a great event," ICC president David Morgan said. "Many of the top Associates are very evenly matched and I am expecting some thrilling matches during the tournament.

"We know from experience that South Africa is a perfect place to host big multi-team tournaments such as this and I know the teams will have some of the best facilities at their disposal," he said. "Four years ago, Scotland deservedly overcame the opposition in Ireland so I'm sure they'll be anxious to hang on to the title. It's not going to be easy though. Many of the other Associates have made big strides since then so it's going to be a hard-fought tournament."

Among the teams that will be keenly watched will be Afghanistan, who have won the ICC World Cricket League Division 5, Division 4 and Division 3 in the past year en route to South Africa.

The 12 teams are split into two groups of six teams. Ireland, Scotland, Canada, Oman, Namibia and Uganda make up Group A while Kenya, Netherlands, Bermuda, UAE, Denmark and Afghanistan form Group B. Each team plays the other sides in its group once, with the top four making it to the Super Eight stage.

The teams then play four Super Eight matches against the sides they did not meet in the group stage. All points won against qualifiers from the group phase will be carried over to the Super Eight stage.

The top two teams in the Super Eight stage will contest the final to be played on 19 April. The third and fourth-placed sides will play off at Potchefstroom, the fifth and sixth-placed sides play off at Willowmoore Park while the seventh and eighth-placed teams play off at the Stan Friedman Oval, Krugersdorp.

Teams in the top six earn ODI status till 2013 and also qualify for the ICC Intercontinental Cup 2009-10. The bottom two teams will be relegated to Division 3 of the World Cricket League.

Click here for the fixtures.

ICC president Haroon Lorgat and special advisor IS Bindra will meet with USA Cricket Association officials in New York later this month.

The visit is the first by any senior ICC official since the board returned from its second suspension following elections last March. The USACA president, Gladstone Dainty, was re-elected despite being seen by many as the major block to progress within the country, and he has continued to court controversy with rumours growing that the USA could even be suspended again after months of inaction.

"Given the huge potential, we don't want to lose the market in the USA," Bindra told the Kolkata-based Telegraph, but he made quite clear that did allow Dainty to carry on regardless. "At the same time, we in the ICC need to be clear about the direction the USACA is taking, that's why this review.

"Many in the USA have an emotional attachment to cricket and that needs to be harnessed. Sadly, there's been in-fighting from the early 1990s. Now, apparently, everybody is getting together and that's a good sign. The USACA can't afford to have more factionalism."

But the disharmony remains, and privately ICC officials are believed to be angry that after the fresh elections have been followed by months of inactivity. It took until November for the executive to hold its first meeting, and the post of CEO, which should have been done and dusted by the year end, has only just been advertised.

Critics of USACA hope that the real reason behind Bindra and Lorgat's visit is to fire a final warning blast across Dainty's bows. Shape up, or this time you will be kicked into touch for good.

The schedule for the ICC World Cricket League Division 3 which takes place in Argentina next month has been announced. The two finalists will progress to the ICC World Cup Qualifiers in South Africa in April.

Click here for the complete schedule

The ICC has agreed in principle to the launch of Divisions 6 and 7 of the World Cricket League, with the inaugural Division 6 tournament taking place in May/June 2009 in Guernsey and the Division 7 event in September in Singapore. Those venues are subject to confirmation.

The 10 slots have been assigned by region, with three teams from Asia (two for Division 6 and one for Division 7), three teams from Europe (one for Division 6 and two for Division 7), two teams from Africa (one for each division), one team from the Americas (for Division 7) and one team from East Asia-Pacific (also for Division 7).

The teams in Division 7 will, be Guernsey, Nigeria, Japan, Suriname, Bahrain and Gibraltar, while Division Six will consist of Singapore, Botswana, Norway, Malaysia and the top two teams from Division 7.

The Netherlands allrounder, Ryan ten Doeschate, has been named as the Associate Player of the Year for 2008 at the ICC Awards in Dubai.

Click here for more

A little more than a week after the postponement of the Champions Trophy, Cricinfo can reveal that the ICC will have to either move or postpone its next high-profile event, the World Cup Qualifiers.

The tournament, which involves the leading Associates, is due to be staged in the UAE next April, with the top four countries winning a place at the 2011 World Cup. The event will also be used to establish which six Associates will be granted one-day status for the next four years.

Read the full story here and leave your comments below.

The ICC and ECB have reaffirmed their support for the mandatory release of Associate players from county cricket to take part in international matches and the priority of FTP events.

This followed discussions and correspondence between the ICC president, David Morgan, and the new CEO, Haroon Lorgat, with Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, and ECB chief executive David Collier.

"The full commitment of the ECB to work with counties to support the ICC Board's mandatory release policy for Associate players is great news and very welcome," Morgan said. "It will help to ensure that when the top Associates have ODIs against Full Members or compete in next month's ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in Belfast they have their top players available.

"In terms of the ICC WT20 Qualifier, that will make sure the best teams reach next year's event, rather than the teams with the most top players available on that weekend in August, something that will then have a knock-on effect of enhancing next year's event.

"And with all county-contracted players available for a ODI against Full Members it will make the Associate side that much more competitive, making for a worthwhile experience for that Full Member as well as a great career-enhancing one for all the Associate players, even those playing regular county cricket.

Those comments were endorsed by Clarke. "The ECB recognises that nation versus nation is the lifeblood of cricket and its integrity must be protected at all costs. One way of protecting that integrity is by ensuring that the top Associate players currently playing county cricket are available for their countries in all their mandatory commitments with Full Members and in prestigious events such as the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier. The ICC further recognises that this must also embrace and enforce the priority of all FTP events and ECB welcomes that position.

"Whilst we recognise the individual choice of players we will continue to proactively remind counties of their mandatory obligations in this regard and this will help to ensure our strong sport grows ever stronger."

Despite the encouraging words, this is actually unlikely to make any difference to the availability of players. Those that have missed matches recently have not been prevented from playing by their counties but have actually chosen to give priority to their full-time employers rather than turn out for their countries.

While the boards can do all they can to urge their best players to be available, the increasing number of games played by them allied to the pressure on individuals to perform for their counties means that availability will always be hit and miss.

It is likely that most county-contracted players will be freed to play in the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifiers as this is a high-profile competition. But when it comes to one-off ODIs or other lower-key competitions, county is always likely to win through over country.

The ICC has announced a revised schedule for the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in Belfast next month.

The tournament, involving the six leading Associate teams - Bermuda, Canada, Ireland, Kenya, the Netherlands and Scotland - will now take place from August 2 to 5, with a fourth day included to allow room for a third and fourth-place play-off.

Click here for the full story

Zimbabwe's withdrawal from the ICC World Twenty20 in England in 2009 has opened the way for a third Associate county to be invited from next month's ICC World Twenty20 Qualifiers.

The leading Associates meet in Belfast between August 2 and 4 with the top two gained an automatic place in the main event the following June.

"The third associate will come through the qualifiers in August this year," Samir Inamdar, the chairman of the ICC's Affiliates and Associates, told Cricinfo. "I have had a conversation with Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, who has agreed that it is logical to replace Zimbabwe with an Associate."

Next week's ICC annual get-together promises to have more than its fair share of politicking, posturing and controversy. But, unless there is a major about-turn, it should also be a watershed for the Associates and Affiliates.

In 2009, income from the ICC's six-year media deal with ESPN-Star, worth over US$1 billion, kicks in, and while the game's big boys will still keep the lion's share, the rest will see substantial increases in their incomes.

Although the ICC draws considerable flak on many fronts, it is quietly committed to promoting the game in as many countries as possible, and it does that by means of a myriad of competitions and initiatives. Most do not warrant much media attention, but they are there and they work.

Until now, the gripe of the smaller countries, and especially those bubbling just underneath the top flight, has been about the inequality of the way in which the game is financed. That was never more apparent than when it came to earnings from last year's World Cup.

Ireland got a flat fee of US$125,000 a year for four years for taking part, and on top of that they received another $50,000 for reaching the Super Eights. However, because of the extra costs involved in their progression, not least because their players are not professional cricketers and their absences from their full-time jobs had to be underwritten, Ireland's success actually left the board out of pocket.

Zimbabwe, on the other hand, turned up, tied with Ireland and never threatened to progress after being thumped by Pakistan and West Indies. For those three matches, Zimbabwe Cricket received US$11 million, their share of the pot as a Full Member.

The top six Associates receive no more than US$500,000 a year - some substantially less - to fund their entire operations. Out of that they have to pay all their cricketing and administration costs. Only those with a low cost of living, such as Kenya, can hope to maintain a professional squad on that kind of money.

The gulf between the haves and have-nots is further widened by the limited sums Associates can earn from sponsorship and media contracts. Zimbabwe can exploit home series against, say, India to carve out lucrative TV deals worth millions, and on the back of that, attract shirt- and other corporate sponsorship. As highlighted by Scotland's failure to secure any TV deal for their forthcoming ODI against England, the Associates struggle to get such income streams.

The new deals will provide a substantial increase for Associates, especially for the countries who are pressing for space at the top table. Until now the share has been roughly equal, rewarding Netherlands and Kenya on par with Thailand and Fiji. The new system will see more demarcation between the top Associates and the rest.

The leading ten could earn as much as US$1.5 million a year from 2009. There will then be an onus on them to professionalise their administrations, but several of them are already well down that route. They will also be more accountable - the ICC does not want a repeat of the mess that came following a spike in Kenya's funding earlier in the decade.

The second-string Associates will also get more - around US$160,000 as a base figure - but then again the demands on them are less. Even Affiliates will receive US$15,000, with the opportunity for more should they make a good enough case. There will also be more cash in the pot for participating and hosting competitions.

There have never been more opportunities for development outside the Full Member countries, but there remain some nagging worries.

The main one is how to bridge the gap between semi and full-blown professionalism. Almost all the Associates rely on dedicated amateurs, both on and off the field. As the number of ICC competitions has increased - and they have to be welcomed - the pressure has begun to tell. Scotland and Ireland particularly have already found players cannot meet all their commitments, and even the increased income will not allow them to employ a full-time squad.

"So much of putting players on full-time retainers depends on how many fixtures we can command," Warren Deutrom, Cricket Ireland's chief executive, said. "At the moment, all we can promise the squad in 2009 is a World Cup qualifying campaign, eight FP Trophy matches, an England game, and probably some Intercontinental Cup matches. Of course, we hope to have more, but can't be sure at the moment.

"Our top players are already plying their trade in county cricket, while others have full-time jobs which they may not wish to give up. The actual number of players that the coach will want to put on a full-time contract, or else the number that even want to have one, may not be that many."

The other quandary is how to get them fixtures. Kenya, widely regarded as the leading Associate, have found it almost impossible to get Full Member countries to visit or host them. As a result they invariably play other Associates. Good for the win-loss ratio, not so clever in providing the kind of experience that no amount of money can buy.

These issues will need to be addressed, but for now the future has never looked so promising beyond the Test world.

The ICC has confirmed that the World Cricket League will be expanded from five to eight divisions after the 2009 World Cup Qualifiers.

The WCL was launched in 2007 with the dual aims of providing more meaningful cricket to more Associates and Affiliates, and also giving a direct path which enabled any country to achieve the ultimate goal of playing in the World Cup.

The addition of three more divisions has been made possible by the substantial increase in funding available once the ICC’s new media deal kicks in next year. It is believed that Division Six and Seven will run in 2008 and Division Eight in 2009.

The extra leagues, which should be approved by the ICC when it meets for its annual meeting in Dubai at the end of the month, will be drawn up based on results in regional competitions.

Ireland will host the inaugural World Twenty20 Qualifiers between August 2 and 4, with the top six Associates vying for the two places available to them in next year's ICC World Twenty20 in England.

Click here for more and the itinerary.