|
 |
 | | You are in: You are in: Cricket |
 | | Saturday, 12 January, 2002, 12:00 GMT India reject Denness panel  Dalmiya has objected to the composition of the panel India's row with the International Cricket Council (ICC) over the Mike Denness affair is set to drag on after the Indian board rejected the panel set up to review the matter. On Thursday the ICC announced South African judge A.L. Sachs, former Pakistan skipper Majid Khan and ex-Australia batsman Andrew Hilditch would investigate the saga. But Jagmohan Dalmiya, president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), has told the world governing body they must reconsider the make-up of the panel. "We have written a letter to the ICC and requested them to reconsider and reconstitute their panel," Dalmiya said on Saturday. He claimed the ICC had not consulted him over the process and merely informed him of the panel members. "It is disappointing the ICC did not have much concern or respect for Indian views," Dalmiya continued. "My entire board will feel very disappointed at the way we have been treated by the ICC."
The three-man Referees Commission was set up by the ICC after India had match referee Denness sacked without ICC permission during their tour of South Africa late last year. Denness handed out punishments to six Indian players, including Sachin Tendulkar, after the second Test against South Africa in November. India were unhappy with some of Denness's decisions and persuaded their South African hosts to sack him. The ICC responded by stripping the third and final match between the sides of its Test status as the row escalated into a crisis.
BCCI president Dalmiya has raised objections to both Khan and Hilditch joining the Commission set up to investigate the matter. The BCCI suggested that Zimbabwe's Justice Ahmed Ebrahim, an ICC match referee, Australia's Richie Benaud and Ian Chappell, Gary Sobers and Clive Lloyd of West Indies be considered. They were even prepared to accept England's David Gower, Geoffrey Boycott and former Test umpire Dickie Bird. Dalmiya said the BCCI opposed Majid Khan because they did not want to "embarrass" him after he was drawn into making comments over match-fixing allegations following Pakistan's defeat against Bangladesh in the 1999 World Cup. Instead the BCCI proposed the former Sri Lanka captain Arjuna Ranatunga, Pakistan's Imran Khan and Zaheer Abbas. Asked what would be BCCI's response if the world governing body rejected its request, Dalmiya said: "Why should we pre-empt what needs to be done? We will cross the bridge when we come to it." Khan has previously served as an ICC match referee and is a former chief executive of the Pakistan Cricket Board. Hilditch is a practicing solicitor and is an Australian national selector. The Commission is due to be chaired by Justice A L Sachs, a member of South Africa's Constitutional Court and the ICC's Code of Conduct Commission since its formation in 1999. "This is a Commission of quality and integrity and one which combines outstanding cricket pedigree with a high degree of legal and administrative expertise," Gray said on Thursday. "I am entirely confident that it will fulfil its brief to the satisfaction of all parties." Range of Issues The trio are due to start their investigation in February with their recommendations to be considered by the next ICC executive board meeting in March. They will investigate whether or not Denness followed correct procedure but will not review the penalties he imposed. They will also look at a range of issues surrounding referees and umpires. These include the possibility of setting up a system of appealing referees' decisions, formulating a code of conduct for match officials and ensuring consistency of decisions. They will also recommend whether referees should explain their decisions to the media. | |
Internet links:  The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Other top Cricket stories:  Links to more Cricket stories are at the foot of the page. | ||||||||||
 | | | | |
|
Links to more Cricket stories |
| ||
 | ^^ Back to top | |
| Front Page | Football | Cricket | Rugby Union | Rugby League | Tennis | Golf | Motorsport | Boxing | Athletics | Other Sports | Sports Talk | In Depth | Photo Galleries | Audio/Video | TV & Radio | BBC Pundits | Question of Sport | Funny Old Game ------------------------------------------------------------ BBC News >> | BBC Weather >> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- © MMII|News Sources|Privacy | ||
E-mail this story to a friend