Player workload a key factor in development of FTP says ICC

The International Cricket Council (ICC) today said player workload was a key factor in its introduction of the current Future Tours Program (FTP).

ICC Chief Executive Malcolm Speed said: "Far from ignoring the issue of player workload and FICA's request for an upper limit on the amount of matches played, the subject remains very much on the ICC's agenda.

"The Chief Executives' Committee, which meets next month, is discussing the application of the guidelines already agreed by Members surrounding the FTP.

"Those guidelines, which have been supported at the ICC Cricket Committee, by the players at the captains' meeting and by player representatives, including FICA, suggest the volume of cricket for national teams should not exceed 15 Test matches and 30 ODIs in a 12 month period.

"The guidelines need to be interpreted with a reasonable degree of flexibility from year to year but out of the sixty annual touring programs under the FTP, not one side is scheduled to exceed both the Test and ODI figures in any 12-month period

"Most of the Members' schedules fall well short of the guidelines and several of our Members, including some of those where the players' association is affiliated to FICA, maintain the view that they would like to be playing more cricket than they currently have scheduled.

"On the flip side, India, which has more ODI matches scheduled than any other country, indicated at a recent ICC Board meeting that their playing schedule was supported by their player group.

"Beyond the FTP commitments, Members may look to schedule additional matches to maximize their revenue and so grow the game.

"But they also need to responsibly manage those commitments to protect their prime assets, the players, and the integrity of the game.

"And players, in turn, need to recognize the two-way nature of the current situation. Few would dispute the pressures associated with their jobs but they are engaged in their career of choice.

"They are doing something the vast majority of people watching them can only dream of, are better rewarded for their efforts than any of their predecessors and many of them also have access to excellent support structures."

Mr Speed added the implementation of an FTP provided enormous benefits for players, supporters and administrators.

"Before 2001 the touring arrangements were ad hoc with no guarantee that sides would tour all other Members.

"The FTP has changed all that, bringing certainty to schedules, a guarantee that spectators will get to see opponents within the cycle and the chance for players to test themselves in all conditions.

"It has also allowed the proper functioning of a Test and ODI Championship where teams can now be ranked fairly, on the basis that each line-up plays against every other, something that provides context to every series."

Mr Speed said he noted FICA Chief Executive Tim May's recent comments that players may resort to strike action or drug use as a response to the demands placed upon them.

"Remarks like that serve no purpose in a reasoned debate and do FICA no credit at all," he added.

The new six-year FTP can be found here