ICC announces landmark equal match-day pay for female match officials

(ICC) - In a groundbreaking decision, the ICC announced equal pay for female match officials, signalling its commitment to gender equality in cricket.

The reforms include the equalization of match-day pay for ICC umpires, regardless of whether they are officiating men's or women's cricket matches. 

The initiative, which is set to be implemented in January 2024, marks a pivotal moment in cricket's history, as it takes another stride towards equal opportunities in the sport.

The Chief Executives’ Committed (CEC) also recommended including at least one neutral umpire in every series of the ICC Women’s Championship, in line with the long-standing practice in men’s international cricket.

The Board also approved new gender eligibility regulation for women’s cricket according to which male-to-female participants who have undergone male puberty will not be eligible to compete in the international women’s game, irrespective of any surgical or gender reassignment treatment they may have undertaken.

ICC will revisit these regulations within two years to align with the sport's evolving landscape. At the domestic level, though, these regulations will remain under the jurisdiction of individual member boards.

ICC Chief Executive Geoff Allardice remarked, "The changes to the gender eligibility regulations resulted from an extensive consultation process and are founded in science, aligning with the core principles developed during the review.

“Inclusivity is incredibly important to us as a sport, but our priority was to protect the integrity of the international women’s game and the safety of players."

The ICC has also agreed to implement a trial "stop clock" in men’s ODI and T20I cricket from December 2023 to April 2024. This aims to regulate the time taken between overs.

A five-run penalty will be imposed the third time a bowling team fails to be ready to bowl the next over within 60 seconds of completing the previous one.

This move is part of a broader effort to improve the pace of the game and enhance the spectator experience.

Changes have also been approved to the pitch and outfield monitoring regulations. These changes include a simplification of the criteria for pitch assessment and an increase in the threshold for when a venue might lose its international status, from five to six demerit points over a five-year period.