International Cricket Council CEO Geoff Allardice has decided to step down just weeks before the Champions Trophy with a board member indicating that his failure to present a "clear picture" of host Pakistan's lack of preparedness is one of the multiple reasons behind the move.
The venues at Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi are still getting readied as a January 30 deadline looms for the handover of the stadiums to the ICC. An ICC board member on condition of anonymity said, "What broke the camel's back was Champions Trophy where as CEO, he was supposed to give a clear picture about readiness of Pakistan to host a tourney of such magnitude,".
The official ICC statement made no mention of the exact reasons for Allardice's departure but a top source said the development has been building up for a while. The board member further added, "The ICC T20 World Cup in the US was big a flop in terms of playing conditions and also it exceeded budget, the auditing is still being done,".
Following the resignation, Allardice in his statement said, "It has been a privilege to serve as the Chief Executive Officer of the International Cricket Council and I am incredibly proud of the results we have achieved, from enhancing the global reach of cricket to the commercial foundation put in place for ICC Members. I believe this is the right time for me to step down and pursue new challenges,"
Who is Geoff Allardice?
The 57-year-old joined the ICC in 2012 as General Manager of Cricket, coming from Cricket Australia, where he served as Cricket Operations Manager. He was appointed CEO of the ICC in November 2021, after having served as acting CEO for eight months.
Champions Trophy venues under scanner
The Champions Trophy is due to start on February 19 with India playing its share of matches in Dubai owing to security concerns in Pakistan. The bigger concern for ICC is, however, the fact that tournament venues in Karachi and Rawalpindi are still partially under construction or renovation and the images that have trickled in from there do not paint a very positive picture.
It remains to be seen whether Pakistan would be ready in time for the marquee event, which features the world's top eight teams and is being held for the first time after 2017.
