At their meeting in Calcutta yesterday the ICC's management board took what had become an inevitable decision in the face of a legal threat from American media and marketing group Time Out.
As reported in Electronic Telegraph on Monday, Time Out and the United States Cricket Association were claiming the right to be involved in the development of a ground at Disney and in any ICC tournament held there. Further details of the decision to stage the 10-day tournament in Sharjah instead are expected today, when the ICC's chief executive, David Richards, will also report on progress towards a Test world championship.
The decision means England, who are in the United Arab Emirates preparing for the opening match against India tomorrow in the four-nations Champions Trophy, will play two tournaments in Sharjah within 11 months, having played here only once before in the 18 years since the stadium was built.
David Graveney, manager of the present side and chairman of the England selectors, said last night that, within reason, England want to play as many one-day tournaments as can be sensibly fitted in before the 1999 World Cup. With a tour of Australia starting in early November, it is arguable whether it is right for England to be touring, albeit with a specialist one-day side for a tournament expected to last only 10 days, so soon after the end of the next season at home.
In common with the other eight Test countries, however, England were committed to playing in Florida in late September and early October next year to help the ICC raise funds for the development of cricket in 'new' areas of the world, especially North America and those Asian countries where the game has barely scratched the surface.
Asif Iqbal, the former Kent and Pakistan all-rounder who co-ordinates cricket in Sharjah, expressed his pleasure that the highest profile tournament yet was due to be held in the Emirates. ``Sharjah will be promoted as a result and as we are in the middle of the cricket world here, games will be at prime television time.''
The television rights here are held by World Tel, the company run by Indian businessman Mark Mascerenhas, who was a would-be partner in the Disney enterprise. It remains to be seen whether World Tel will also get the rights to a tournament which the ICC are determined to run themselves through their company ICC Development Ltd, especially as ICC executives are unhappy about Mascerenhas's role, as they see it, in thwarting their attempted partnership with Disney World.
England practised here yesterday morning and will do so again under the lights which are being used the first time for the Champions Trophy. Matthew Fleming has recovered from bruised ribs and is expected to be one of the 11 named this evening for the opening match. The only unfit man at present is coach David Lloyd, who was unable to take the net session yesterday because of mild 'flu.
India, arrived in neighbouring Dubai yesterday after their drawn Test series against Sri Lanka. They were pleased about the decision of a former Indian chief justice that the accusations of match-fixing made in an Indian magazine by former Test all-rounder Manoj Prabhakar had been dismissed as ``imaginary and unrealistic''. Since Sharjah has been the scene of some unexpectedly sudden batting collapses in the past in matches attracting feverish betting on the Subcontinent, the verdict is timely. No match-fixing allegation in cricket has ever been proved.
Mick Jagger, Rolling Stone and cricket fanatic, has set up an internet service which will bring live audio coverage of all seven matches in Sharjah. The link to the Cricinfo website is in the 'External Links' section of this page.