In an unprecedented move, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has decided not to sanction the National Cricket League (NCL) to hold future editions. This comes in the wake of the league not following playing XI rules set by the ICC for T20 and T10 cricket.

Last year, the global governing body established stricter guidelines while sanctioning newer T20 and T10 leagues. One of the criteria is to have to have seven local players in the playing XI.

Banned for Flouting Playing XI Rule

As reported by Cricbuzz, the NCL breached the playing XI guideline on multiple occasions. There were instances of teams fielding six to seven foreign players in XI, directly breaking the ICC’s guidelines set for sanctioned leagues.

Apart from that, the league also ran into operational issues after the drop-in pitch caused a risk to player safety. Fast bowlers like Wahab Riaz and Tymal Mills were asked to bowl spin rather than pace bowling.

There were also concerns about the league breaching the immigration laws of the United States of America (USA). To participate in a sports event in the US, the management has to procure valid sports visas for players, which cost around US$200,000.

However, some of the players participated in the NCL without a proper sports visa. This was perhaps done to cut costs, but that has raised suspicion of the league’s management practices.

USA – Major Cricketing Hub

Since the last few years, the USA has become a hotbed for cricketing activities, with many T20 and T10 leagues emerging now and then. 

The ICC’s desk is also flooded with lots of applications to sanction newer leagues in the USA. That has prompted the governing body to reform its league sanctioning process, which may see further strict guidelines, especially in associate member nations.