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One of the longest-running soap operas in Indian cricket is over ­ atleast for the time being. That’s precisely what the contract rowbetween the three principal “characters” ­ the International CricketCouncil (ICC), the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) andthe players ­ resembled. And like any soap opera, it got tiresome veryfast. Initially the questions were many. Will the players sign? Will asecond-string team be sent? Will Jagmohan Dalmiya come down from hishigh horse? Will the ICC succeed in brokering a peace agreement? Whois right and who is wrong? The debate went on endlessly. Towards theend, however, there was only one question being asked. When will allthis end?

So is it a case of all’s well that ends well? Unfortunately not. Whathas been put together is a hasty ad hoc patch-up for the Colombotournament. Once the competition ends on September 29, it is on thecards that there will be another protracted battle on the issue,possibly affecting the run-up to the World Cup in South Africa earlynext year.With the monetary angle being a ticklish subject ­ especially whenmillions of dollars are at stake ­ there is no guarantee that therewill be a quick and early end to a controversy that threatens tobecome one of the most serious the game has faced. Cricket has hadmore than its share of problems of late, and it has severely damagedthe fabric of the once-noble game. But who cares when personal egosand one-upmanship become the governing factors?Players and administrators are the twin pillars of the game.Spectators may watch the cricketers in action, and the players maybring in the large television audiences. But without administratorsbringing in more bucks through attractive packaging and lucrativecontracts with sponsors, the respective boards – and consequently theplayers – would not enjoy the monetary benefits. The two are interdependant on one other, and it is thus imperative that there betransparency and trust on both sides. The players should not keep adistance from administrators, who for their part should not let thecricketers feel alienated.The lack of trust that the players feel towards officials has almostalways been present, and if anything, the present sorry episode hasproved that this attitude has not been unjustified. The officials havebeen less than transparent in their dealings with the players, and thecontracts row is only the latest in a long line of deals that hashelped sow greater mistrust between players and administrators. Thetwo have to work closely together for the betterment of the game, andthis is perhaps the most important lesson driven home by thecontroversy.The television rights market was a major factor in influencing thefinal deal. If any proof was needed, it was provided when the board ofdirectors of the IDI – the financial arm of the ICC – taking part inthe marathon one-hour-45-minute telephone conference that wasessentially to be between the ICC, the BCCI and the boards of othercountries. With so much money emanating from Indian sponsors, there islittle doubt that fielding anything other than a full-strength Indiansquad would have caused a major problem. Thus it is imperative thatthe BCCI takes the players into confidence, almost as partners, as theofficials are fully aware that the major stars have contracts of theirown.But administrators generally have been living in an ivory tower, faraway from the players and from the reality of any given situation.This in a nutshell is the genesis of the unhappy episode that, with asome give and take on all sides, could have been solved quickly. Itwas a comparatively simple issue that became complex throughmishandling by the main protagonists. It snowballed into a matter ofprestige and with no-one wanting to lose face, it just dragged on andon.For all one knows, it may even drag on once negotiations are resumedafter the end of the Colombo tournament. A permanent solution has tobe found before the conduct of the World Cup in South Africa earlynext year. The second episode of the controversy could last evenlonger unless the central players in the drama are willing to learnfrom the mistakes committed over the last month.It is important that the ICC, the BCCI and the other boards, and theplayers do not think in terms of victory or defeat, of having scored apoint or two. They should realise that the image of the game hassuffered and endeavor their best to plug the holes. To achieve this,an understanding approach from all sides is necessary. A rigid stancewill not help matters.To be sure, all the parties had seemingly valid points of view. Therow centered on a conflict between official tournament sponsors andthe players’ own individual sponsors. The players had to safeguardtheir contracts and not for a minute is anyone suggesting they shouldnot make as much money as they can. The ICC on their part had theprotection of the ambush marketing clause uppermost in their minds.They too had signed contracts running into millions of dollars and sothey could not back down. The BCCI, after asking the ICC to talkdirectly with the players in an effort to find a solution to the vexedproblem, rejected the compromise deal, arguing that it could provokelegal action from sponsors.But there is little doubt that the image of all the three involvedparties took a dent to some degree or other. Ultimately BCCI chiefJagmohan Dalmiya climbed down after member countries of the ICCassured him that the Indian Board would not have to pay any damages,should they be sued by disgruntled tournament sponsors. It finallytook an international tele-conference with just over two days for thestart of the tournament to reach an uneasy truce ­ surely not the bestway to handle a sensitive issue.

The working committee meeting of the Board of Control for Cricket inIndia (BCCI) at New Delhi yesterday made a decision that has beenwidely viewed as the first step in a long drawn battle with the IndianGovernment. Following the Government’s ambiguous stance on playingagainst Pakistan, the BCCI has decided not to take part in any eventsinvolving Pakistan. This includes fixtures conducted under the aegisof the International Cricket Council (ICC) like the ICC KnockOutTrophy and the World Cup.”In the absence of clear-cut guidelines in this matter, the Board hasdecided to play only in bilateral or triangular series involving Testplaying countries. We will not participate in tournaments such as AsiaCup, ICC Knock-out series (2002) and the 2003 World Cup because we donot know whether we would be able to play certain sides, likePakistan, or not,” said Board President AC Muthiah. Only recently, theIndian Government issued a directive to the BCCI prohibiting them fromtaking part in tournaments in certain offshore venues includingSharjah, Singapore and Toronto. Citing the reason that these venuesfostered irregularities like betting and matchfixing, the Governmentmade a unilateral decision not to play in these venues for threeyears.The agenda for working committee meetings of the BCCI is always laidout well in advance. In this case, there was no mention of thiscrucial decision prior to the meeting although the BCCI made it clearthat it would discuss a host of issues, including the irregularitiesin ticket sales at Goa where the last One-Dayer against Australia tookplace, the appointment of the BCCI media manager and the affiliationof four new states to the BCCI. The fact the Board President came outwith this announcement soon after the meeting took reporters andanalysts by surprise.It is quite clear the BCCI has not taken kindly to the Governmentclipping its wings in this regard. After withdrawing from thetriangular series in Sharjah, India came up for a lot of criticism ininternational fora. As is to be expected the Pakistan Cricket Boardcame out strongly against the BCCI and went to the extent of askingthe ICC to take some disciplinary action. With the ICC ruling out thepossibility of any disciplinary action on the basis that the Sharjahtourney was not an ICC endorsed event, the controversy subsided.However the latest decision taken by the BCCI has put the Governmentin a spot. Only recently, India put in a strong bid to host the ICCKnockOut Trophy which is scheduled for September next year. Thehosting of the event was already in doubt, with the Indian Income Taxauthorities not withdrawing tax exemptions that were earlierprevalent. The BCCI is doing its best to secure the tax exemption andhas suggested that it would even go to the courts if necessary. ICCPresident Malcolm Gray has given the BCCI time till April 30 to securethe tax exemption. If the BCCI fail to secure the exemption, the eventwill be shifted elsewhere.In case the BCCI does secure the right to host the ICC KnockOut, theGovernment will be in a strange and very embarrassing predicament. TheBCCI has said it will not take part in the tournament unless theGovernment comes up with a “clear-cut” stance on the matter. It’s notoften that a team hosts an ICC event without taking part. Indeed,would be a case of throwing a party without taking part in theoccasion…

Manicaland fell 13 runs short of their rearranged target last Sunday against Old Georgians to lose the league cup final. It was a disappointing end to the league season and a toss captain Neil Ferreira probably regrets winning.In overcast conditions at Harare Sports Club, where bowlers traditionally expect help in the first hour, he had no hesitation in asking OGs to bat. It proved to be the best half of the day for batting with the ball flying unhindered to the boundary. After the rain, when Manicaland were chasing, the ball was heavy, slippery and difficult to propel in any direction.In reaching 248 from their 50 overs, Manicaland’s chief tormenters from the Logan Cup defeat a fortnight ago came back to rub salt in the wound. Craig Evans hit 53 and Angus Mackay 87, with only Richie Sims (10-0-32-3) and Jon Brent (10-0-42-2) making meaningful inroads.Requiring five an over, Manicaland were on track at 99 for one after 21.2 overs (Ferreira 31, Andre Soma 25) when rain and Duckworth-Lewis dictated a revised target of 115 in 15 overs. This they almost achieved with Richie Sims (84) and Jon Brent (17) going well with 33 to get off the last three overs. Their consecutive dismissals signalled the end of a game played in good spirits and watched by a festive crowd of OG supporters. Evans rounded off his match-winning day by cleaning up Guy Whittall and the rest of the middle order with 8-0-43-4. To boost the crowd OGs’ cricket section had laid on free lunch and invited all club members.The team now heads off to Harare and Kwekwe to play four-day Logan Cup matches against Mashonaland A and Midlands before returning to Mutare for the final game of the season against Matabeleland, starting on Thursday 5 April.The ZCU has announced that all league and school cricket will be returning to `straight’ declaration cricket next season. Since the early eighties when Zimbabwe’s future was thought only to be limited-overs cricket, all domestic cricket has been geared towards producing successful ODI sides. The national team’s dismal run at Test level has brought about a change in thinking.School cricket will be played over 110 overs with the team batting first required to declare after 60 overs. National league will be played over 120 overs with 65 being the first innings cut-off. Fielding and bowling restrictions will no longer apply and no game will finish before 1630 hours. It’s evident – particularly at school level – that one-day shots are favoured and coached to the detriment of innings-building efforts. Logan Cup first-class cricket will revert from fourto three-day games – played over two rounds when national team members are not away touring. Games will start on Thursdays with 50-over ODI-type games on the Sunday.In a fortnight’s time during the upcoming school holidays, Hillcrest College will host the first Zimbabwe Under-14 inter-provincial tournament. Set to run from 2 to 4 April, it is part of a new countrywide selection initiative that sees the Under-16s playing in Bulawayo, the Under-19s in Harare and the Under-13s in Hippo Valley/Triangle. Four teams will compete, two from Harare, one from Matabeleland and one from `Zimbabwe Districts’. Manicaland players will have to force their way into this Districts team drawn from Peterhouse, Watershed, Lomagundi, Highveld and all the Midlands schools.

Almost as inevitable as the sight of Michael Clarke and Graeme Smith walking out for the toss at Adelaide Oval on Thursday will be the sound of their two sides resuming a noisy and pungent on-field dialogue from the moment the first ball is bowled.Both camps expect the verbal battle to return in the second Test, particularly after a lively and even ill-tempered final afternoon in Brisbane passed without either the umpires Billy Bowden and Asad Rauf or the match referee Ranjan Madugalle raising a formal charge against either side. The umpires did, though, have a cautionary word to the bowlers at various points of the five days. This has effectively defined a generous line for the players’ on-field aggression, leaving Adelaide to witness more jousting from Thursday.”It’s part of the game, once you get out in the middle and emotions start to rise, it’s good for the game to see a bit of competitive spirit out there between the two teams,” Michael Hussey said. “A lot of the players in the past have used it as a mental battle against batsmen and it’s probably worked in the past as well.”Whether it works on these South African batsmen I don’t know. They’ve shown they’ve been a great team for a period of time now, they don’t get to No. 1 in the world without enduring these sorts of things before. But once you get over that white line, competitive spirit between bat and ball starts, and there’s always going to be things that are said, but as long as it doesn’t go too far and players [don’t] cross the line I think it’s fine.”Clarke spoke before the series about “pushing the line” of legal aggression in this series, whether it was in terms of short-pitched bowling or a pointed choice of words. Australia’s players make no secret of their use of verbal aggression towards the opposition as a way of firing themselves up, something witnessed quite pointedly earlier this year during the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka when the ears of the Irish among others were left ringing by fighting words from the mouths of Shane Watson and David Warner in particular.In Brisbane it was James Pattinson who vented his distaste for batsmen most freely, with Smith copping plenty on the final afternoon after he pulled away from one delivery as the bowler entered his delivery stride. Ultimately Pattinson, who won the duel, delivered a send-off to South Africa’s captain that might have forced Madugalle to act had it been even a fraction more prolonged.Smith had played the role of instigator earlier in the match, confronting Ed Cowan with an attempt to disturb the opener’s concentration as he prepared to face up to the first over of the fourth day’s play. Smith’s words were brushed aside by Cowan, but provided further proof that Australia and South Africa are most comfortable when flinging a little mud each other’s way in pursuit of victory.Nevertheless, AB de Villiers noted that Australia’s bluster proved unsuccessful in the 2008-09 series in Australia, a useful reminder of the fact that sharp words can quickly appear hollow if not backed up by sharper deeds.”They thought so in 2008 as well and it didn’t really happen that way, so hopefully we can prove them wrong again,” de Villiers said of the contention that Australia considered sledging to be a way to get into South African heads.”There’s always a bit of chat around. We’re talking about two very good teams who want to win the game. You do whatever you can to get a few wickets when the pressure is on. Whatever you can do to get an edge over the opposition, you will do it.”

Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar and I T wizard Dr Vijay Bhatkar were conferred with ‘Maharashtra Bhushan Puruskar’, Maharashtra’s highest civilian award in Mumbai on Tuesday.Tendulkar, became the youngest recepient at the age of 28, when he received the award for the year 2000-01, from the Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh at a simple ceremony held at Rang Bhavan in South Mumbai.The award carries a scroll, memento and Rs five lakh. ‘Wonderboy’ Sachin, whose presence evoked enthusiastic response from the crowd, said he was missing his father at this moment. “Without the teachings of my father I would not have been where I am today”, an emotionally charged Sachin said.He profusely thanked his coach Ramakant Achrekar, support provided by Cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar and his family members. Sachin, who has scored 10,000 runs and scalped 100 wickets in the one-day edition of the game, vowed to give his best to the game thereby bringing laurels to the state as well as country.Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal said Tendulkar ought to be conferred with the Bharat Ratna. Cultural Affairs Minister Ramkrishna More, Minister of State for Cultural Affairs Vimal Mundada, Cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar, former Indian cricket board chief Rajsingh Dungarpur and Ramakant Achrekar were among those present on the occasion.

Match Facts

Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Start time 1430 (0900 GMT)

Big Picture

For a series with such an unhurried schedule, the rush to start within three days of the Tests is puzzling. India have had so little time to prepare that they decided to take an army chopper to Dambulla to save time on the five-hour road journey from Colombo. On Monday afternoon, the Indian team had their only practice session ahead of the one-dayers. They had a three-hour net in the middle, observed by the groundstaff going through their last-day preparations such as getting the advertising hoardings in place and the security personnel going through their drills.
In contrast to the packed schedule of Dhoni’s team, New Zealand are coming off a lengthy break and have had two sets of practice games, first in Darwin against Indian state side Maharashtra and then against a couple of teams made up of Sri Lankan fringe players.Both sides are missing key players but India will start as favourites, particularly given the amount of experience the team has of the conditions in Dambulla. One thing to New Zealand’s advantage side is that unlike most subcontinental pitches, Dambulla will favour their pace-heavy attack.Traditionally, the track is far tougher to bat on under lights than in the afternoon session, due to which the toss assumes plenty of importance.

Form guide

(most recent first)
India: WLWWL
New Zealand: WLLLW

Watch out for…

Suresh Raina is coming off a fantastic start to his Test career, and seems to have established himself as the best of the young Indian batsmen battling for middle-order berths. He didn’t have the best of times during the Asia Cup, and will want to make amends this time round.
In the absence of Brendon McCullum and Jesse Ryder, Ross Taylor’s batting form becomes crucial to New Zealand’s chances. For a man with little captaincy experience, Taylor also has the added challenge of leading the side.

Team news

An ankle injury has ruled Ishant Sharma out of the first game which means Abhimanyu Mithun is in line to add to his solitary one-day cap. Dhoni had struggled with a finger problem during the third Test but he said that he expected to play despite being in a bit of pain.
Dinesh Karthik was Man of the Match in the Asia Cup final after making a half-century at the top of the order, but India also have the option of going in with Virat Kohli, who began his India career as an opener during a series in Sri Lanka two years ago.India (probable): 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Dinesh Karthik/Virat Kohli, 3 Rohit Sharma, 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 6 Suresh Raina, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Praveen Kumar, 9 Abhimanyu Mithun, 10 Pragyan Ojha, 11 Ashish NehraKane Williamson, the Northern Districts batsman who turned 20 on Sunday, gets the belated gift of a one-day debut on Tuesday. Andy McKay had impressed Daniel Vettori with his pace in a handful of international appearances but he may not get a chance given the presence of Daryl Tuffey, Kyle Mills, Tim Southee and several medium-pace bowling allrounders.New Zealand (probable): 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Peter Ingram, 3 Ross Taylor (capt), 4 Kane Williamson, 5 Scott Styris, 6 Grant Elliott, 7 Gareth Hopkins (wk), 8 Nathan McCullum, 9 Daryl Tuffey, 10 Kyle Mills, 11 Tim Southee/Andy McKay

Pitch and conditions

No cricket has been played at the Dambulla stadium since the Asia Cup which means there will be plenty of juice in the fresh, greenish track on Tuesday. To balance that is the fact that the boundary ropes have been pulled in at least 10 metres from where there were during the Asia Cup.

Quotes

“It is an opportunity for them [Daniel Vettori and Brendon McCullum] to spend some time with their families. They will come back fresh and strong, it has turned out to be a positive thing for them and for the youngsters as well.”

“The amount of games we are playing, it is very important to switch off from cricket because 365 days in a year, you can’t be thinking only about cricket.”

Northern Districts’ English imports, Steven Croft and James Foster, played crucial innings in the 24-run win against Otago at Seddon Park, in the opening game of the HRV Cup. They came together in the eighth over, with Northern Districts on 42 for 4, and added 126 runs for the fifth wicket. The 100-run stand had come off only 62 balls. Croft made 81 off 49 deliveries and Foster scored 48 off 30. Both of them were dismissed in the last over and Northern Districts made 174 for 7. Neil Wagner took thee wickets for Otago but was expensive, conceding 39 in four overs.Anton Devcich struck two early blows in Otago’s chase, reducing them to 19 for 2 in three overs. Hamish Rutherford top-scored with 47, but Otago did not have the powerful innings that Croft and Foster had provided Northern Districts. They were always behind the asking rate, and finished on 150 for 6. Left-arm seamer Bradley Scott did not take a wicket for Northern Districts but he conceded only 23 runs in four overs.

ScorecardAlex Hales continued his to enjoy life in coloured clothes•Getty Images

Alex Hales powered Nottinghamshire to a convincing six-wicket win over Northamptonshire at Trent Bridge.The opener scored 75 from 71 balls, hitting eight fours and two sixes, to help Nottinghamshire stretch their lead at the top of Yorkshire Bank 40 Group A to four points with only three matches remaining.Set to score 206 for their eighth win in nine matches, Nottinghamshire cantered to victory with 44 deliveries remaining to push Northants back to third place in the table.Hales’ highest one-day score of the summer was ended in unconventional circumstances, as he drove Kyle Coetzer’s first ball of the summer straight into the hands of Alex Wakely at extra cover. It was only Coetzer’s third wicket in 100 one-day outings.Earlier, Northants scored 205 for 9 having elected to bat first, with Wakely top-scoring with 59 from 52 deliveries with four fours and two sixes. For the home side, Jake Ball recorded figures of 3 for 33 with Ajmal Shahzad claiming 3 for 40.Northants failed to get any momentum in their innings, losing wickets at regular intervals. Apart from Wakely, six other batsmen reached double figures without getting to 30. Opener David Willey twice cleared the ropes inside the first seven overs before becoming the first of Shahzad’s victims, well taken by David Hussey on the long-on boundary for 29.Cameron White helped Wakely add 59 for the fourth wicket but used up 52 deliveries in making 29 before prodding one of Steven Mullaney’s off-cutters straight to Samit Patel in the covers.The batting Powerplay proved to be particularly costly for the visitors, with Shahzad removing both Steven Crook and Matt Spriegel in a double-wicket maiden before Wakely lofted Ball to Mullaney as three wickets fell for six runs in just 10 deliveries.Michael Lumb helped Hales get Nottinghamshire off to an explosive start, the pair adding 64 inside 10 overs. Lumb hit seven boundaries in his 36 but his departure and the subsequent run-out of James Taylor briefly brought the visitors back into contention.Taylor, who went into the match with a tournament average of 114 this season, made only five before trying for a risky single to mid-on and being run out by a direct hit from Willey.Patel made 37, in a stand of 81 with Hales, as Nottinghamshire bounced back from the disappointment of their midweek loss in the Friends Life t20 quarter-final.

Sri Lanka women’s team manager ARM Aroos has resigned from all his posts connected to the women’s game in the country, following the board’s sanctioning of a formal inquiry against him because of a complaint made by captain Shashikala Siriwardene last week, accusing Aroos of extortion.Retired senior superintendent of police, Hemachandra Dias, had conducted a preliminary inquiry into the matter, and recommended that the board conduct a formal inquiry into the allegations, at the SLC’s executive committee meeting on Tuesday. The executive committee subsequently appointed a panel to carry out the inquiry, and following that Aroos submitted his resignation. Apart from being team manager, Aroos was also a national women’s selector. He also stepped aside from his position as chairman of Sri Lanka’s umpires committee, relinquishing that duty until the inquiry is complete.The executive committee appointed Channa Weerakkody as team manager for the upcoming tour of Ireland, and named Srinath Silva the acting chairman of the umpires committee.

The BCCI’s plan to regulate player agents, announced on Sunday, will begin with the centrally contracted players being asked to submit the names of their agents for the accreditation process. Sunday’s announcement, three days after the arrest of three Rajasthan Royals players on allegations of spot-fixing during the IPL, marks the first time the board has officially recognised the existence of player’ agents.The BCCI believes accrediting player agents will help them distinguish between genuine agents and others, and its change of stance is said to have been prompted by the presence of close friends of Sreesanth, one of the arrested cricketers, in Royals’ team hotel through much of the tournament.Jiju Janardhan, an alleged bookie who was arrested, is believed to be Sreesanth’s friend since their stint at the MRF Pace Academy almost a decade ago. Janardhan has been staying regularly in Royals’ hotel, and has been allegedly posing as Sreesanth’s agent with the betting mafia.While Jiju’s case has been exposed, many “close friends” and “agents” of regular India cricketers constantly accompany them, and are booked in the team hotel wherever the Indian team travels.”We will ask all the players to let us know who their agents are so that it would be easier for the ACSU officials to bifurcate between those who are in touch with cricketers constantly,” a BCCI official said.They hope to soon expand it and get all affiliated units to do the same when it comes to domestic circuit first, before filtering it down to age-group cricket as player agents have started playing a major role in junior cricket, especially since the advent of IPL.”There’s a need to regulate that aspect,” the official said. “We’ve to collect information about all the player agents so that the BCCI is aware of who are the people that are involved, and it would be easier to track the involvement of players with those who also stay in the same hotel where the team is put up.”The BCCI has always shared a topsy-turvy relationship with player agents. Agents are alleged to have played an influential role in national team’s selection in the past. In 2007, the BCCI had barred then chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar from writing syndicated columns for newspapers. The columns were syndicated by a sport management company owned by one of the major player agents.The BCCI contemplated cracking the whip on player agents in the wake of India’s disastrous 2007 World Cup by announcing a cap on a player’s endorsements before backtracking on it. Even then, all of BCCI’s official media releases used to be regularly copied to a few player agents.Soon after the conclusion of the inaugural IPL edition, the BCCI warned junior cricketers against some player management firms who were trying to lure talent into signing for them with an assurance of getting an IPL contract. One of the clauses in the contracts that were being offered maintained that the players had to pay the agency 20% of all earnings “including match fees”.The board’s announcement comes three years after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) put in place a new anti-corruption mechanism in the wake of the spot-fixing scandal that resulted in the imprisonment of three Pakistan cricketers.One of the first rules instituted was the agents’ registration system, which was drafted by the PCB legal head Taffazul Rizvi. Under the new rule every PCB contracted player, both international and domestic, must be represented by a registered agent.The PCB also put a cap on the number of players an agent could represent. In addition, Zaka Ashraf, the tech savvy PCB head, pushed for a security and vigilance department to provide cover to the players. In fact a vigilance officer is currently travelling with the Pakistan squad on their trip to the United Kingdom.One of the main requirements that the PCB has placed on the agent is that they cannot have any prior criminal record. If it is an overseas agent, they need to get clearance from the Pakistan High Commission.Cricket Australia, in fact, has one of the most sound agent accreditation systems around. The Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) and CA have “agreed to introduce a compulsory scheme for the accreditation and regulation of player agents representing professional cricketers in Australia.”Under the memorandum of understanding, the ACA and CA have agreed that, as from April 1, 2013 (with only limited exceptions), CA, state associations, BBL teams and the ACA will only deal with accredited agents in player contract discussions,” the CA website says. As of now, 26 agents have been accredited under this scheme.