FICA wants Ethics Panel probe

The furore over Laxman Sivaramakrishnan’s appointment as a players representative in the ICC refuses to settle with the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA) now referring the matter to the ICC Ethics Officer for an independent investigation.

“FICA has tried all we can to get the ICC to refer this matter to the Ethics Officer themselves, however after more than six weeks of no action we are left with no choice but to refer the matter ourselves,” said FICA Executive Chairman Paul Marsh.
“We have evidence of captains being pressured by their boards into changing their votes away from the incumbent player representative on the Committee Tim May, in favour of Laxman Sivaramakrishnan and we will present this to the Ethics Officer.
“The evidence is strong and we expect it to be acted upon,” he added.
The decision to refer the controversial captains’ vote to the ICC Ethics Officer was taken at a FICA Board meeting in London last week.

“It is extremely concerning and disappointing that the governing body of our sport has refused to follow its own processes for dealing with allegations of unethical behaviour,” Marsh said.

Sivaramakrishnan, backed by the BCCI, beat May for the job resulting in a controversy as reports emerged that captains had overwhelmingly voted for May in the initial election before a re-poll was conducted to ensure the Indian’s appointment.

The FICA Executive also met with teams and players during the week and came up with a ‘Statement of Unity’.

In the statement, the players have said: “We support FICA as the voice of professional cricketers everywhere and expect it to receive due recognition and respect by the ICC and our respective Boards as it plays its role in representing our interests.”

A copy of the statement has been sent to the ICC.