ICC Hands 3-Month Breather to USA Cricket

The ICC Board has granted a three-month reprieve to USA Cricket (USAC) to address governance issues.

Background

USAC has been under fire for nearly a year, with the ICC putting it on notice at the last annual conference in July 2024. A Normalisation Committee visited the United States last month and is understood to be not impressed with the progress made.

ICC Decision

The Jay Shah-led ICC has granted USAC a three-month reprieve, citing the sensitive nature of the situation given the country's hosting of the upcoming Olympic Games.

Qualification Pathway

The ICC has decided to adopt a hybrid model for the LA28 qualification pathway, with teams qualifying based on ICC T20 rankings or competing in a qualifier.

Automatic Qualification

The US men's and women's teams are expected to receive automatic qualification for the Olympic Games, but the selection process remains unclear.

Next Steps

The ICC Board has constituted a working group to make recommendations on the structure of all three formats of the game, with details expected to be announced on Sunday.