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ICC suspends USA Cricket Association

The ICC Board has suspended the membership of the United States of America Cricket Association (USACA)

Cricinfo staff
03-Mar-2007


The USA will not be meeting any other side soon © Getty Images
The ICC Board has suspended the membership of the United States of America Cricket Association (USACA).
USACA failed to meet the agreed and subsequently extended deadlines for the adoption of its constitution and the holding of elections, the ICC confirmed in a letter to USACA president Gladstone Dainty.
This is the second suspension for the USACA, after it was previously prevented from attending the 2005 annual conference after elections were shrouded in controversy. That suspension was lifted in March 2006 subject to new elections under a new constitution and the appointment of all USACA Executive positions by December 31. The USACA was then granted an extension for this until March 1, 2007.
The suspension, under immediate effect, means that the USACA will not receive the annual ICC grant that was expected on April 15 and will be withdrawn from the World Cricket League Division 3 Series to be held in Darwin, Australia in May and relegated from that division. Additionally, the national team preparation grant for that event and direct funding support from the ICC Americas Region Development Program will also be withheld.
The suspension will be lifted when the West Indies Cricket Board, requested by the ICC to monitor the progress of the game in the USA, recommends a suitable time in agreement with the Executive Board.
Malcolm Speed, the ICC CEO, said the decision, though unpleasant, was necessary given then lack of initiative from the USACA. "It is especially disappointing that the USA players have had to be penalized in this way for matters that are largely beyond their control. The ICC recognizes that the USA has vast potential as a cricketing nation but without a functioning administration that potential is likely to remain largely untapped.
"The ICC hopes this measure will serve to focus minds within cricketing circles in the USA, that sense will prevail and that all those with the good of the game at heart will come together and take control of this unfortunate situation."