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Greig calls for end to India 'domination' of ICC

Former England captain Tony Greig has called for an end to India's "domination" of the International Cricket Council (ICC), saying it was the first thing he'd change if in charge of the governing body.

Updated on: May 17, 2011 08:02 AM IST
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Former England captain Tony Greig has called for an end to India's "domination" of the International Cricket Council (ICC), saying it was the first thing he'd change if in charge of the governing body.

HT Image
HT Image

"Number one, we have got to try and get the ICC right," Greig told the BBC in an interview.

"We have a situation at the moment where the ICC is dominated by India.

"They tell Zimbabwe, Bangladesh and one or two other countries what to do and they always get the vote.

"It's very hard, but somehow we have got to change things at that level."

South Africa-born Greig added: "We are playing too much cricket. I would be getting all the countries from the world and saying hey listen, what is this nonsense of giving Indian domestic cricket an open window?

"To give the IPL (Indian Premier League, a domestic Twenty20 competition) an open window, and reduce by two months the time available for cricketers to play around the world, in the current environment is just ridiculous.

"It is laughable that (Chris) Gayle and (Kieron) Pollard are playing in the IPL when the West Indies are playing Pakistan -- that is just ridiculous."

Greig, though, stressed his longstanding affection for Indian cricket, dating back to his time as a player which included leading England to a 3-1 Test series win in India in 1976/77.

"I took to India and the subcontinent very much...I loved the place," he said while giving an interview to coincide with the publication of a new biography, 'Tony Greig: A Reappraisal of English Cricket's Most Controversial Captain,' by David Tossell.

"It was the first time I really felt as if we were entertaining people, as the people there loved the game so much -- to go to those stadiums and find them packed full," explained Greig, who made his name in England with south coast county Sussex.

"To this day (Kolkata's) Eden Gardens remains one of my top three grounds, just because of the incredible atmosphere."

 
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Get the Cricket Live Score! including IPL Matches and track ICC rankings shifts, Cricket Schedule, and Players Stats along with detailed score profiles of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill.
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