The International Cricket Council (ICC) was founded at Lord's on 15 June 1909 as the Imperial Cricket Conference, [1] with Australia, England, and South Africa as its founding members. In the beginning, only countries within the Commonwealth could join. [2] These members were then joined by India, New Zealand, and the West Indies in 1926 and later by Pakistan in 1953. [3] In 1961, South Africa resigned due to their leaving the Commonwealth, [2] but they continued to play Test cricket until their international exile in 1970. [4]
The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the global governing body of cricket. It was founded as the Imperial Cricket Conference in 1909 by representatives from Australia, England and South Africa. It was renamed as the International Cricket Conference in 1965, and took up its current name in 1989. It organises world championship events such as Cricket World Cup, Women's Cricket World Cup, ICC T20 World Cup, ICC Women's T20 World Cup, ICC Champions Trophy and Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), the European Cricket Council (ECC) and, until August 2005, the International Cricket Council (ICC). Lord's is widely referred to as the Home of Cricket and is home to the world's oldest sporting museum.
The England cricket team represents England and Wales in international cricket. Since 1997, it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club since 1903. England, as a founding nation, is a Full Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) with Test, One Day International (ODI) and Twenty20 International (T20I) status. Until the 1990s, Scottish and Irish players also played for England as those countries were not yet ICC members in their own right.
The Imperial Cricket Conference was renamed the International Cricket Conference in 1965, with new rules permitting countries from outside the Commonwealth to be elected into the governing body for the first time. That year, Fiji and the USA became the first Associate Member nations. [2]
In 1981, Sri Lanka became the first Associate Member to be elected a Full Member, returning the number of Test-playing nations to seven. In 1989, the ICC was again renamed, this time to International Cricket Council. [2] South Africa was reelected as a Full Member to the ICC in 1991 and Zimbabwe was elected in 1992. [3] It would be eight years before the next Full Member, Bangladesh, was elected in 2000. [3] On 22 June 2017, Ireland and Afghanistan were granted Full Member and Test status, bringing the number of Full Members to 12. [5]
The Ireland cricket team represents all of Ireland in international cricket. The Irish Cricket Union, operating under the brand Cricket Ireland is the sport's governing body in Ireland, and organises the international team.
The Afghanistan men's national team is the 12th test cricket playing Full Member nation. Cricket has been played in Afghanistan since the mid 19th century, but it is only in recent years that the national team has become successful. The Afghanistan Cricket Board was formed in 1995 and became an affiliate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2001 and a member of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) in 2003.
As of 29 July 2019, there are 104 ICC members, with 12 Full Members and 92 Associate Members. The Membership Committee will consider all future requests for membership – full and associate – against an objective set of criteria. There was previously a third level, Affiliate Membership, which was removed in June 2017 with all previous Affiliate Members becoming Associate Members. [6] The rule changes introduced a hierarchy, with two categories of membership: Full Members and Associate Members. Any new member elected to the governing body could only be an Associate Member, with the possibility of later being promoted to a Full Member based on ongoing performance in international competition.
A hierarchy is an arrangement of items in which the items are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy is an important concept in a wide variety of fields, such as philosophy, mathematics, computer science, organizational theory, systems theory, and the social sciences.
In July 2019, the ICC suspended Zimbabwe Cricket, the first time this has been done to a Full Member side. [7] [8] In October 2019, the ICC lifted its suspension on Zimbabwe Cricket. [9]
Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC), known as the Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU) until 2004, is the governing body for the sport of cricket in Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe Cricket is a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC), and administers the Zimbabwe national cricket team, organising Test tours, One-Day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals with other nations. It also organises domestic cricket, including the Castle Logan Cup, the Coca-Cola Metbank Pro50 Championship and the Stanbic Bank 20 Series in Zimbabwe.
Full Members are the governing bodies for cricket in a country or a group of associated countries representing a geographical area. All Full Members have a right to send one representative team to play official Test matches and have full voting rights at meetings of the ICC. Also, all Full Member nations are automatically qualified to play ODIs and T20Is. [2] The West Indies cricket team does not represent one country, but rather an amalgamation of more than 15 countries and territories from the Caribbean. The English Cricket team represents both England and Wales and the Ireland cricket team represents all of the island of Ireland.
The Caribbean is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands and the surrounding coasts. The region is southeast of the Gulf of Mexico and the North American mainland, east of Central America, and north of South America.
England and Wales is a legal jurisdiction covering England and Wales, two of the four constituent countries of the United Kingdom. ’England and Wales’ forms the constitutional successor to the former Kingdom of England and follows a single legal system, known as English law.
"All-Ireland" is a term referring to all of Ireland. It contrasts with terms such as Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland, which apply only to specific jurisdictions on the island. "All-Ireland" is most frequently used to refer to sporting teams or events for the entire island, but also has related meanings in politics and religion.
Among these 12 nations, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Ireland have played as associate nations under the ICC before becoming Full Members.
Country | Teams | Governing body | Full Member since [2] | Test status since | Region | Current ranking (men's) | Current ranking (women's) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Test | ODI | T20I | WODI | WT20I | ||||||
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | Afghanistan Cricket Board | 22 June 2017 | 14 June 2018 | Asia | — | 10 | 8 | — | — |
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | Cricket Australia | 15 June 1909 | 15 March 1877 | East Asia-Pacific | 4 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | Bangladesh Cricket Board | 26 June 2000 | 10 November 2000 | Asia | 9 | 7 | 10 | 9 | 9 |
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | England and Wales Cricket Board | 15 June 1909 | 15 March 1877 | Europe | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | Board of Control for Cricket in India | 31 May 1926 | 25 June 1932 | Asia | 1 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 5 |
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | Cricket Ireland | 22 June 2017 | 11 May 2018 | Europe | — | 12 | 17 | 10 | 10 |
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | New Zealand Cricket | 31 May 1926 | 10 January 1930 | East Asia-Pacific | 2 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | Pakistan Cricket Board | 28 July 1952 | 16 October 1952 | Asia | 7 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 7 |
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | Cricket South Africa | 15 June 1909 | 12 March 1889 | Africa | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 6 |
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | Sri Lanka Cricket | 21 July 1981 | 17 February 1982 | Asia | 6 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 |
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | Cricket West Indies | 31 May 1926 | 23 June 1928 | Americas | 8 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 4 |
![]() | Men • Women • U19 | Zimbabwe Cricket | 6 July 1992 | 18 October 1992 | Africa | 10 | 11 | 12 | — | 13 |
Reference: ICC Men's Rankings, ICC Women's Rankings, 24 July 2019
Associate Members are countries where cricket is firmly established and organised but do not qualify for Full Membership. [2] There are 92 Associate Members. [10]
All Associates are eligible to play in the ICC World Cricket League, a series of international one-day cricket administered by the ICC. [11] There is also an ICC T20 World Cup Qualifier that works as a qualification process for ICC T20 World Cup that occurred every two years (until 2016, the next T20 World Cup is in 2020). Until April 2018, only the qualified teams were awarded Twenty20 International status. [12] In April 2018, the ICC announced T20I status for all its members from 1 July 2018 for women's game and from 1 January 2019 for men's game. [13]
In addition to key administrative requirements of the national governing body, an Associate Member must: [14]
ICC grants One-Day International status to its Associate Members based on their success in the World Cricket League.
The Associate teams who currently hold ODI status are:
Team | Governing body | ODI status since | Region | Current ODI Ranking |
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Namibia Cricket Board | 2019 [97] | Africa | – |
![]() | Cricket Association of Nepal | 2018 [2] | Asia | 15 |
![]() | Koninklijke Nederlandse Cricket Bond | 2018 [2] | Europe | 13 |
![]() | Oman Cricket Board | 2019 [98] | Asia | – |
![]() | Cricket PNG | 2019 [99] | East Asia-Pacific | 17 |
![]() | Cricket Scotland | 2018 [2] | Europe | 14 |
![]() | Emirates Cricket Board | 2018 [2] | Asia | 16 |
![]() | USA Cricket | 2019 [100] | Americas | – |
In winning the 2015–17 World Cricket League, Netherlands ensured they would become an ODI team at the end of the 2018 World Cup Qualifier. The three other highest placed associates in this qualifier (UAE, Scotland and Nepal) joined them. In June 2018, Scotland and UAE were added to the main ODI rankings list, with Nepal joining them in January 2019. [101] Netherlands will be added once they have played enough games to gain a meaningful rating.
Four additional teams gained ODI status after the conclusion of the World Cricket League Division Two tournament in April 2019. [102] These teams were Namibia, Oman, Papua New Guinea and USA. [102]
In April 2018, the ICC announced T20I status for all its 105 Members from 1 January 2019. Therefore, all Twenty20 matches played between ICC Members after 1 January 2019 will be full T20I. [103] [13]
There are five countries who were previously members of the International Cricket Council (associate or affiliate), but had their memberships revoked due to various reasons.
Country | Region | ICC membership period |
---|---|---|
![]() | Africa | 1999-2019 [104] |
![]() | Americas | 2002-2013 |
![]() | Asia | 2002-2015 |
![]() | East Asia-Pacific | 2000-2014 [105] |
![]() | Europe | 1985-2012 |
Regional bodies aim to organise, promote and develop the game of cricket in their respective ICC regions:
Two further regional bodies were disestablished following the creation of the African Cricket Association:
A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, usually 50. The Cricket World Cup, generally held every four years, is played in this format. One Day International matches are also called Limited Overs Internationals (LOI), although this generic term may also refer to Twenty20 International matches. They are major matches and considered the highest standard of List A, limited overs competition.
The Kenya national cricket team represents the Republic of Kenya in international cricket. Kenya is an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) which has Twenty20 International (T20I) status after the ICC granted T20I status to all of their members.
The Nepal national cricket team nicknamed The Rhinos and Gorkhalis, represents the country of Nepal in the international cricket and is governed by the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN). They have been an Associate Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 1996. Nepal were awarded Twenty20 International (T20I) status by the ICC in June 2014 until the 2015 ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier. On 15 March 2018, Nepal gained One Day International (ODI) status for the first time, after winning the first playoff match in the 2018 Cricket World Cup Qualifier.
The Hong Kong national cricket team is the team that represents Hong Kong and played its first match in 1866 and has been an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 1969.
The Scotland national cricket team represents the country of Scotland. They play their home matches at The Grange, Edinburgh, and also some other venues.
The Netherlands national cricket team is the team that represents the Kingdom of the Netherlands and is administered by the Koninklijke Nederlandse Cricket Bond.
The Oman national cricket team is the team that represents the country of Oman and is governed by the Oman Cricket Board, which became an Affiliate Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2000, and gained Associate status in 2014. The national side has played matches at Twenty20 International level. On 24 April 2019, Oman achieved One-Day International status for the first time until 2022, after they beat tournament hosts Namibia by four wickets in 2019 ICC World Cricket League Division Two.
The Papua New Guinea national cricket team, nicknamed the Barramundis, is the team that represents the country of Papua New Guinea in international cricket. The team is organised by Cricket PNG, which has been an Associate Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 1973. Papua New Guinea previously had One-Day International (ODI) status, which it gained by finishing fourth in 2014 World Cup Qualifier. Papua New Guinea lost both their ODI and T20I status in March 2018 after losing a playoff match against Nepal during the 2018 Cricket World Cup Qualifier, a result that earned ODI and T20I status for their opponents. On 26 April 2019, at the final World Cricket League 2 fixture; PNG defeated Oman to finish at the fourth position and reclaim their ODI status.
A Twenty20 International (T20I) is a form of cricket, played between two of the international members of the International Cricket Council (ICC), in which each team faces twenty overs. The matches have top-class status and are the highest T20 standard. The game is played under the rules of Twenty20 cricket. Starting from the format's inception in 2005, T20I status only applied to Full Members and some Associate Member teams. However, in April 2018, the ICC announced that it would grant T20I status to all its 105 members from 1 January 2019.
The Netherlands women's national cricket team, nicknamed the Lionesses, represents the Netherlands in international women's cricket. The team is organised by the Koninklijke Nederlandse Cricket Bond (KNCB), which has been an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 1966.
The Scotland women's national cricket team, nicknamed the Wildcats, represents Scotland in international women's cricket. The team is organised by Cricket Scotland, an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC).
The 2020–22 ICC Cricket World Cup Super League will be the inaugural edition of the One Day International (ODI) league. The league will last from May 2020 to March 2022 and will serve as part of the qualification process for the 2023 Cricket World Cup.
The 2018–19 international cricket season was from September 2018 to April 2019. 34 Test matches, 92 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and 74 Twenty20 International (T20Is), as well as 28 Women's One Day Internationals (WODIs) and 130 Women's Twenty20 Internationals (WT20Is), were played during this period. The season started with India leading the Test cricket rankings, England leading the ODI rankings and Pakistan leading the Twenty20 rankings. In October 2018, the International Cricket Council (ICC) introduced separate rankings for women's ODIs and T20Is for the first time, with Australia women leading both tables.
The 2019 international cricket season was from May 2019 to September 2019. The 2019 Cricket World Cup in England and Wales took place during this time, starting on 30 May 2019. 10 Test matches, 78 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and 109 Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is), as well as 1 Women's Test, 9 Women's One Day Internationals (WODIs) and 130 Women's Twenty20 Internationals (WT20Is), were played during this period. The season started with India leading the Test cricket rankings, England leading the ODI rankings and Pakistan leading the Twenty20 rankings. On 3 May, the International Cricket Council (ICC) expanded the men's T20I rankings to include all current Full Member and Associate members of the ICC, featuring 80 teams. In the women's rankings, Australia women lead both the WODI and WT20I tables.