ICC critical of FICA handling of player survey

'Thanks to the way the game is being administered the players were able to share in a prize pool of US$5 million, including US$2.24 million for the winners, Australia' © Getty Images

The ICC has reacted to the publication of a survey by the Federation of International Cricketers' Associations (FICA) conducted during the World Cup which claimed to show that the majority of cricketers are critical of the way it runs the game.

An ICC spokesman told Cricinfo that FICA only represents players from five of the Full Member countries and none of the Associates. "Given that 240 players, plus replacements, took part in the event it would be interesting to know how many of them were polled to produce this result," he said.

"Does the survey take any account of the fact that players' attitudes to the game, its administrators and the tournament are almost certainly bound to be affected by their own and their team's performance at the World Cup? Sides that progressed in the tournament are far more likely to have a positive view of the game than, for example, teams eliminated in the first round. Thanks to the way the game is being administered the players were able to share in a prize pool of US$5 million, including US$2.24 million for the winners, Australia."

Tim May, FICA's CEO, was unimpressed. "The prize money relates to about 2% of total revenue produced," he told Cricinfo. "The ICC should not be deluded that their performance is only going to be judged by reference to commercial considerations. Administration is far more than the dollar value of contracts that you sign. It involves decisions."

The ICC spokesman said that May had issued the findings to the media without advising the ICC beforehand. "If [he has] any points he wishes to raise with the ICC he is more than capable of picking up the phone and calling Malcolm Speed; in fact, given that he is part of the ICC cricket committee, he could make his points in person along with a group of other highly distinguished people closely connected with the game in various ways.

"It is interesting that Tim chose to release the findings of his survey to the media but, despite the fact it is critical of the ICC, he chose to not to share the information with the organisation or provide a right of reply before that release, something that would have allowed the two groups to work through any potential issues he or his members may have in a sensible and reasoned way."

May, however, said that the ICC had been informed prior to the release and that Dave Richardson, the ICC's general manager - cricket, had been sent all questions and replies.

The ICC spokesman also told Cricinfo that the release had not highlighted the positive aspects of the survey. "Eight-six per cent of those surveyed felt the anti-doping education they received was appropriate, 84% felt the same about anti-corruption matters and 82% were content with the ICC Anti-Racism Code information they had to hand; despite FICA's perspective, we believe most people would regard figures of that sort as very positive and a testament to the hard work in terms of education that the ICC and its members carry out in this area."

May agreed that the ICC had "worked hard on educational materials and this is noted in the media summary." But he added: "FICA will not be satisfied until all players are adequately educated. The penalties in anti-doping matters are severe - they taint players' reputations for life and can be career ending. Attitudes of '85% is good enough' are embarrassing and an indication why players are losing the confidence in the ICC."