Safe and corruption free World Cup are biggest challenges: ICC

ISLAMABAD: Security is the biggest challenge for the International Cricket Council (ICC) while staging the 2015 World Cup Down Under according to David Richardson the ICC Chief Executive.

It s perhaps a sign of the changing times but David Richardson believes that delivering a secure and corruption free cricket World Cup will be their greatest challenge over the next two months.

The 2015 edition of ICC s premier one day international tournament takes place in Australia and New Zealand from February 14 with the final of the 14 team quadrennial event taking place on March 29 in Melbourne.

Richardson said this was the first World Cup in which security has been the biggest expense for the ICC. Security. I suppose it is reflective of the global situation we are in. That has been a big challenge for us. The spend on security in this World Cup is more than ever before said the former South African wicketkeeper during an interaction with media at the ICC headquarters in the Dubai Sports City Sports360 reported.

Previously the cost of travel and accommodation would exceed the security projects but now it is the other way round. It is the biggest expense for the World Cup apart from the prize money.

It has been a challenge but I think we are very well placed so there is not necessarily a threat to the tournament itself but obviously we have to be aware of the global situation.

The other factor of course is match fixing and spot fixing. Any incident along those lines will be a disaster for the event.

Richardson is confident there will be no match fixing at the World Cup not only because of the extensive work done by the Anti Corruption Unit (ACU).

The ACU have been working for the last two three years on putting in place memorandums of understandings with the New Zealand police and with the Australian police to make sure they make it very very difficult for any of these fellows travelling around the world who are trying to influence matches added Richardson.

There are two ACU officials on duty at each venue and they not only watch the ground but they will also watch the hotels and all that but as I said the pre tournament intelligence is at such a level where we can brief the players beforehand.

The number of approaches the number of reports that we are getting from players shows that the players have got this very much in the forefront of their minds and they are taking the responsibility seriously he added. (APP)