ICC threaten to ban striking players from IPL

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The International Cricket Council have at last made a definitive statement on the West Indies salary strike situation, which saw the players abandon their tour of India, saying similar action will have heavy consequences.

The Windies player left India with five fixtures, including three Tests, still unplayed, and the BCCI have since told them to pay up to the tune of 42 million US dollars. The ICC have stayed out of it, until now.

They had a meeting over the weekend where the matter was discussed, and the overall consensus seems to be that similar action in future, by any side, will see players banned from leagues like the IPL, which will have big financial consequences.

The statement read: "The ICC and all of its Member Boards on Sunday noted with deep disappointment the recent decision of the West Indies players to abandon an international tour without fulfilling the contractually agreed playing obligations between the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
 
"Putting aside the legitimacy or otherwise of any grievances of parties involved (and which are now the subject of a domestic Task Force probe), the ICC and all Member Boards noted that players abandoning tours have the potential to cause irrevocable damage to the sport in the jurisdiction of the relevant Member Board concerned, as well as enormous financial damage, which might adversely affect the financial viability of the sport itself.
 
"With that in mind, and in a show of solidarity, all Member Boards collectively expressed the view that they consider such player action to be extremely disruptive, damaging and unacceptable.
 
"Players who behave in a similar manner in the future will not only risk breaching the disciplinary rules of the relevant Member Board and being sanctioned accordingly, but may also put in jeopardy their ability to conclude future contractual arrangements with domestic franchises or clubs in other jurisdictions."
 
ICC Chairman N Srinivasan said: "It was undoubtedly a sad chapter in our sport. It damaged cricket's integrity and reputation, as well as affecting confidence within the cricket community, especially that of the fans.

"The ICC Board was determined to address this situation and ensure such incidents never happen again.
 
"The ICC is working with the concerned Members towards finding a positive resolution and is confident that there will be constructive outcomes for our game."

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