ICC bans National Cricket League USA over non-compliance to the playing eleven requirements

The International Cricket Council (ICC) had previously directed the National Cricket League (NCL) to adhere to the rules of the playing XI. The rule stated that every playing XI in the league should consist of seven USAC-affiliated or associate players. The league has failed to adhere to the condition and the apex cricket council has stated that the board will not sanction the league in its future editions. 

The move comes almost a year after ICC established guidelines for the sanctions of T20 and T10 leagues around the world. As per Cricbuzz, the board wrote a letter to NCL stating its non-compliance to the Playing Eleven requirements and explained its decision over the same. It also stated that a breach of sanction regulations was known to NCL authorities before the event.

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It is worth noting that, NCL had signed Wasim Akram and Vivian Richards as its ambassadors. Moreover, Indian cricketing legends, Sachin Tendulkar and Sunil Gavaskar had joined its ownership group. Though the league garnered much attention due to its star attraction, ICC has further cited “on and off field” reasons for its action against the tournament.

A total of 6-7 foreign players were seen gracing the field on multiple occasions which was a clear breach of the regulation. To make things worse, the drop-in wickets which were used turned out to be of sub-standard. The pitch was so unfit that pacers such as Wahab Riaz and Tymal Mills were asked to bowl spin to avoid any harm to the batter.

Previously the league was also embroiled in potential violations of U.S. immigration law. It was reported that the foreign players who had entered the USA had no valid sports visas to partake in the tournament. For the unversed, the cost to sponsor sports category visas for an American cricket tournament with about six teams is around USD 200,000.