Former England cricketer and match referee Chris Broad has made shocking claim a year after his contract was not renewed by the ICC. Broad alleged that he was instructed to be lenient towards India in relation to over-rate offences during his tenure that lasted 21 years.
"I was very happy to carry on. But for 20 years, I dodged a lot of bullets, both politically and physically. I look back and I think, 'you know, 20 years is quite a long time to be doing that job'," he alleged in an interview with the Telegraph.
“I'm pleased not to be travelling to certain parts of the world. And I was always someone who believed in right and wrong and in certain parts of the world it's a bit like the River Ganges – right and wrong are so far apart and there's a lot of dirty water in between them that you have to deal with, so I think as someone who comes from a right and wrong perspective, to last 20 years in that politically active environment is a pretty good effort."
Broad on incident involving Ganguly
To elaborate, England’s legendary fast bowler Stuart Broad’s father recounted an incident where Sourav Ganguly-led India made repeated over-rate offences.
"India were three, four overs down at the end of a game so it constituted a fine. I got a phone call saying, 'be lenient, find some time because it's India'. And it's like, right, OK. So we had to find some time, brought it down below the threshold. The very next game, exactly the same thing happened. He [Sourav Ganguly] didn't listen to any of the hurry-ups and so I phoned and said, 'what do you want me to do now?' and I was told 'just do him'. So there were politics involved, right from the start. A lot of the guys now are either politically more savvy or just keeping the head below the parapet. I don't know," said the 68-year-old.
Broad believes it is much worse now
Broad further expressed concern about ICC’s current state of affairs. He believes that since Vince van der Bijl’s departure, there is more influence of India as they generate the highest revenue.
"I think we were supported by Vince van der Bijl while he was in position because he came from a cricketing background but, once he left, the management became a lot weaker. India got all the money and have now taken over the ICC so in many ways. I'm pleased I'm not around because it's a much more political position now than it ever has been," he further added.