ICC To Reconsider Ten-Team World Cup Decision

The International Cricket Council (ICC) Board is to review its decision to limit the 2015 World Cup to the ten Test-playing nations at the ICC Annual Conference in Hong Kong later this year.

The decision to invite only the top ten Test sides, excluding Associate and Affiliate nations until at least the 2019 event, has attracted widespread outcry, and following representations from countries outside the sport's top ten teams, the ICC will reconsider.

"At the recent ICC Executive Board meeting in Mumbai on 4 April 2011, the Board decided to allow only the 10 Full Members to participate in the ICC Cricket World Cup in 2015," an ICC statement read.

"The Board had also confirmed its previous decision made in October 2010 that the next two World Cups (in 2015 and 2019) would comprise 10 teams.

"These decisions were part of a strategic restructure of ICC events and the context and content for international cricket. As part of the restructure, a Test play-off for the top four teams was introduced and the ICC World Twenty20 was expanded to 16 teams.

"The Board had also agreed in Mumbai that the 10 teams for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 in England would be determined on the basis of qualification."

ICC President Sharad Pawar added: "I have given this matter further serious thought and will request the Board to consider this topic once more. I can understand the views of the Associates and Affiliates and ICC will seek to deal with this issue in the best way possible."

The news will give hope to teams such as Ireland and Afghanistan, whose administrators have strongly condemned the move to limit entry to future World Cups.