ICC to meet ZCU in Dubai on Thursday over player dispute

The International Cricket Council will meet with the Zimbabwe Cricket Union in Dubai this Thursday, 10 June, over the on-going its dispute with a group of prominent players.

ICC President, Ehsan Mani, has called the meeting which will also be attended by the Presidents/Chairman of the Australian, India and South African Boards to allow the international cricket community to get a clearer understanding of the issues surrounding this dispute ahead of the ICC meetings in London at the end of June.

"There remains several outstanding matters that need to be addressed ahead of the ICC meetings and this meeting will allow myself and several of the key countries in international cricket to get a clearer understanding of the issues from the ZCU," said Mr Mani.

Included in the discussions will be the request by the players to have the issues between them and the ZCU dealt with under the ICC's Disputes Resolution Procedures.

"The ICC has previously indicated that the players have sought to have the matter dealt with by the ICC Dispute Resolution Procedures and the ICC has advised the ZCU that its view is that this is appropriate," said Mr Mani.

"The ZCU have presented a detailed legal case arguing that the provisions do not apply and that the ICC has no jurisdiction over this matter and this is one of the issues that will be discussed at the meeting."

Mr Mani said that concern continues to be expressed by cricket boards as well as a wide range of cricket's stakeholders, that the dispute between ZCU and its players has moved from being a domestic issue to an issue that has serious international implications and in particular its impact on the integrity of Test cricket.

"Despite the views that some people have expressed, there is no simple answer to these issues. The discussions in Dubai will assist the ICC in building its understanding of this matter ahead of the Executive Board meeting on 30 June when the Directors will have to exercise their wisdom in helping to resolve this issue."