You're right. The matter of fact is that ICC can only grow the game by allowing in associate nations like Ireland, Holland, Afghanistan, and Kenya into Major Tournaments. But at the same time, the ICC should also ensure that they provide the associates enough opportunities to develop their game.

For instance, the ICC can rank the associates and allow the top 4 associate nations to participate into 3-4 nation tournaments, which involve 3 test playing nations.
Or, they can divide the test playing nations into two tiers, the top 6 into one tier and the lower 4 into the second tier. Encourage the associates to play unofficial tests against the lower tier test nations like West Indies, Zimbabwe, and Bangladesh. This will ensure that Mainstream matches are not affected.

Also, ensure that the associates get matches played in their own nation. For instance, if the ICC is planning to include the associates in a multi-nation ODI tournament, ensure that the participating associate host it

I Think that If accociates country want to play World Cup they must be need this structure and after fullfill the structure ICC should be allowed them.ICC should be need also structure If they want associates in world cup.

1. Ireland, Holland must build more than one good stadium with good facilities.
2. Every team can include 3 foreign players in their leage.

3. Give advertisement about the leage in newspaper, TV, radio and face book. Because people support must be need in one sport.

For ICC

1. They must arranged that Ireland and Holland play at least 25 matches with member in a year so they will progress.

2. ICC give financial and other support for their structure

4.

A very well written article.How can you expect a Canadian side that has barely played any competitive matches in the recent past and is heard of only at the time of the world cup to come out and beat any major test playing nation?Doesn't that reflect poorly on the quality and image of cricket as well?One gets the feeling the associate sides are thrown into the world cup groups just to make the table look more complete.The only way they can prove that they can compete at the highest level is by playing more cricket than what they do at present.They must play,not just against fellow minnows, but top ranked nations as well to improve their game.The Bangladesh cricket team stands testimony to that.The ICC should remember that teams that are on top now,were minnows once upon a time as well.Or cricket will just end up gradually losing the global appeal it enjoys at present.

To answer your question at the end, we have a better ad now, Kevin O'Brien and world cup fastest hundred in an amazing upset.

i totally agree with u. great article! we need associates in world cups, every world cup has an upset. so far netherlands almost beat england, and today ireland actually did. besides without extra teams, how will cricket spread globally? its a shame that ireland and even afghanistan, who was progressing so rapidly, will be excluded. its a shame also that kenya reached semis in 2003 and almost were a test team, and they have gone so down now. zimbabwe also need back test status. what is the ICC doing? are they really trying to help these countries or not?

What a day for cricket today. O'Brien blazes Ireland to cricketing folklore. ICC should seriously consider its vision and as a first step revert its decision to restrict Associate Teams from the world cup.

We need not look further than Ireland's epic win over England today.

Its all political. The ICC worry if Ireland were a full member then it would disturb the balance of power away from the sub continent countries because of the voting power the Asian Block countries have.

Its disgusting (and im speaking as an Englishman) to think that the Ireland team who deservedly beat England today could all play for England because of the ICC's archiac, cack handed rules. Just imagine if Ireland had England's best ODI batsman playing (Eoin Morgan), it could have been even more one sided.

If I were Irish, playing for a team good enough to compete with the best in the world in ODI's and 20/20's, I'd want to play Test cricket for Ireland, not England. Ireland is a proud nation, who have deserved the right to move up to the next level.

Wake up and smell the coffee ICC, 12 countries should be in the World Cup, 11 of which should be Full Members. I'll leave the intelligent ones of you out there to work out who I think should be the 11th Full member..

Games like yesterday's England v Ireland game are exactly why they should stay in the Cup!

*After all, what better advertisement can the game have than a Ryan ten Doeschate hundred?*

A whirlwind 50-ball hundred from Kevin O'Brien. IN YOUR FACE, ICC! Let's see how Mr. Lorgat spins the Associate issue now.

---

That said, to carry on with your dinner analogy, what if T20 does become main course in the next ten years or so? Interest in Test cricket does seem more visible on the Internet than it does in grounds (barring England, Aus, some grounds in India) and to TV execs. And 50-over cricket may be extinct soon. If T20 does become the standardized version of the game globally (with the odd Test played here and there), then hindsight may show the ICC had a point. But when was the last time we accused it of being forward-looking?

However, as long as there is a 50-over World Cup, Associates should be a part of it.

Come on you Irish! I hope to see you in the quarters at least. I think many of us are Irish fans from now.

I've no problem with reducing the number of teams in the world cup, just as long as they make the teams qualify a la the football world cup. What's wrong with a 4-year qualifying period where all odi-playing nations play each other? Scheduling will be tight but I'm sure it could be done. That way if a team is good enough thay will have to produce the goods on a consistent basis in order to challenge for the cup.

all these talks about rubbishing the minnows by people in high places are being made to eat their words. look at K O brien's brilliant display last night. enough said

Thank you very much for this clear and true statement. I totally agree!
If cricket has to be promoted and the associate members must be strengthened...only by competing against full members they get the chance to improve their cricket to the next level...and the better they get, the less "bad" games we're going to see...

Please ICC...see the reason in that and don't let the "real" cricket remain an elite only club of few nations... promote the sport. Even if it means to see some bad games...but have you seen what Ireland did yesterday?!...Without the possibility to play against England...they wouldn't even had the chance to bat the fastest century in Cricket world cup history and also won the highest chase so far...

...and I hope we'll be seeing some other great associate performances in the remaining matches...

Good article and an especially valid point about the T20 world cup invitation being a poor reward for the associate nations, and particular credit for the imagnitive comparision with getting starters and no lunch!

Slightly unfortunate to have used ten Doeschate as an example of associate progress given that he has just been surpassed by Kevin O'Brien as the poster-boy of the emerging nations. ten Doeschate was born in South Africa, but O'Brien was actually born, raised and plays most of his game in Ireland.

Having said that you were close to having a perfectly timed article, it appeared just as the Ireland-England match started and you were hardly to know that O'Brien and Ireland were about to re-write world-cup history.

Still events on the field have confrimed you were totally correct with the essence of this article, so kudos to you Srinath S for correctly hinting that cricket can can do itself by a big favour by trying to include the "lesser" nations as much as possible.

Keep the associates! That is all!