GCA claims 10m from ICC

The stand-off between the Gujarat Cricket Association and International Cricket Council over the state body's demand for compensation for revenue losses of Rs 1 crore [10 million] due to reduced spectator capacity at the Motera Stadium is set to flare-up.

GCA president Narhari Amin on Saturday claimed that he has the Board of Control for Cricket in India's consent not to hand over the 12 plush air-conditioned cabins, that can accommodate 200 persons, to the ICC which had sought the facility for the sponsors.

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"I have received a fax from the BCCI which has asked me not to let the sponsors use the cabins. And till I receive any fresh advice I won't hand over the cabins to them," Amin said a day before the venue hosts the second qualifying match in the Champions Trophy, between Zimbabwe and the West Indies.

Amin said the ICC had asked for 200 chairs in cabins to accommodate the sponsors.

"We initially wanted to set up the cabins at the GMDC pavilion. But the ICC was not amenable to the idea as it felt that the location of the cabins would not provide full viewing to the guests," he said.

"Then we made the cabins in the upper pavilion. And, in the process, we lost 750 seats there.

"We have calculated that we would have been richer by Rs 20 lakh per match had we been able to retain the seats. So, with the stadium set to hold five matches, we asked the ICC to pay us Rs 1 crore [10,000,000] as compensation," Amin said.

The BCCI had also assured the GCA that it would impress upon the ICC to release the amount.

"However, in the October 2 meeting at Dubai, when I S Bindra made the demand, the ICC did not approve the money, and kept the issue pending," he added.