Irrespective of who represents the board at the June 23 ICC meeting in London, whether it's N Srinivasan or Jagmohan Dalmiya, indications from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) suggest India will continue to oppose the Decision Review System (DRS) being made mandatory.
Interim secretary Sanjay Patel, while not committing on the final call, hinted that a status quo is likely to be maintained. “India's stance is well-known and Anil Kumble, who is ICC's technical committee chairman, has already mentioned it. It is unlikely that any change will happen,” he told the Hindustan Times.
India is the only country that has been against the referral system and there has been a lot of talk on whether India will accept it or not and also on who will attend the ICC meeting.
“We haven't decided on who will go as yet. It will be finalised by June 19,” added Patel, echoing Dalmiya's words from Kolkata.
While the BCCI is facing differences on a few fronts including the constitution of probe panel and the rightful person to represent it at the ICC meeting, there were talks of key members having agreed upon a compromise - keep the probe panel picked by Srinivasan and in return, let Dalmiya attend the ICC meeting where DRS is expected to be an issue.
{{/usCountry}}While the BCCI is facing differences on a few fronts including the constitution of probe panel and the rightful person to represent it at the ICC meeting, there were talks of key members having agreed upon a compromise - keep the probe panel picked by Srinivasan and in return, let Dalmiya attend the ICC meeting where DRS is expected to be an issue.
{{/usCountry}}Board Denial
BCCI joint-secretary Anurag Thakur however denied any such compromise. "The emergent working committee meeting on Monday had cleared the panel. So opposition cannot work."
Patel added, "DRS issue is not that big an issue."
What is causing confusion is the way ICC has positioned the DRS rules. Confusion on it has let teams have their own way. The ICC is powerless in applying it.
The current rules state that it is up to both the teams involved in bilateral series to agree to apply it. Any one team's opposition can render it invalid.