Archive · 12 Aug 2026
ICC CEO Says Era of Random Bilateral Scheduling Over
Sanjog Gupta, who leads the International Cricket Council, says cricket needs big changes.
He thinks teams should not play matches randomly without a big reason, because cricket needs excitement and meaning so fans care.
He believes one-day cricket can still be popular if it stays connected to the Cricket World Cup.
He says Test cricket is special and full of history, but it must be made fun for new fans too.
Right now, only India, England and Australia can really afford to play lots of Test matches.
He says cricket can learn from famous events like Wimbledon and The Masters, which stay exciting by reinventing themselves.
He warns that if cricket does not keep growing, it will die.
Leaders are also talking about making a special time for one-day matches before the World Cup.
Some smaller cricket countries, like Scotland and the Netherlands, are unhappy with the ICC about World Cup qualifying changes.
ICC CEO Sanjog Gupta said the era of randomly scheduled bilateral series must end, as countries cannot sustain cricket without context, culture, competition and competitiveness.
Gupta said ODIs can continue not just to survive, but thrive, with the format inextricably linked to the men's and women's ICC Cricket World Cups.
Bilateral series are scheduled exclusively by member boards without ICC intervention, while the ICC handles multi-national competitions like World Cups and the World Test Championship.
Gupta noted that only the big three nations - India, England and Australia - can currently afford to play Test cricket.
PTI understands the ICC has discussed creating a dedicated ODI window heading into the World Cup; Scotland and the Netherlands separately criticized the ICC over the revamped 2027 qualifying structure.
- Who
- Sanjog Gupta, CEO of the International Cricket Council (ICC), in an interview with the Press Trust of India (PTI).
- What
- Gupta called for an end to randomly scheduled bilateral series and argued that Test and ODI formats need reinvention to remain relevant.
- When
- Published August 12; Gupta joined the ICC in July last year.
- Where
- New Delhi.
- Why
- Because countries cannot sustain cricket without context, culture, competition and competitiveness, and attention is increasingly disaggregated.
ICC perspective
Associate nations and critics
2027 ODI World Cup qualifying changes
ICC perspective
The ICC introduced a new 14-team format for the 2027 World Cup, with 10 teams including host nations South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia automatically qualifying.
Associate nations and critics
Scotland and the Netherlands criticized the ICC for a lack of communication on revamping the qualifying structure, calling the episode 'disrespectful'.
Future of ODI cricket
ICC perspective
Gupta says ODIs can continue not just to survive, but thrive, if the focus stays on context, culture, competition and competitiveness.
Associate nations and critics
The future of ODIs 'looks gloomy' amid the growth of franchise T20 leagues, and Jonty Rhodes says 50-over cricket might be the one format in trouble in the years ahead.
- Speaker
- Sanjog Gupta, ICC CEO
- Organization
- International Cricket Council (ICC)
- Background
- Former head of sports at JioStar; joined the ICC in July last year
- Core message
- Era of randomly scheduled bilateral series has to come to an end
- ODI stance
- ODIs can survive and thrive, inextricably linked to men's and women's ICC Cricket World Cups
- Test cricket
- Only India, England and Australia can currently afford to play Tests
- Bilateral scheduling
- Decided exclusively by member boards, without ICC intervention
- Reported ICC discussion
- Possible dedicated ODI window heading into the World Cup
