Toughening its stand over the implementation of the Decision Review System (DRS), the BCCI has threatened to “unilaterally terminate” the Future Tours Programme (FTP) agreement if India is asked to use the technology in a bilateral series concerning them.

According to Daily Mail, who claims to have confidential ICC documents, BCCI president N. Srinivasan has made it clear to the ICC only recently that the DRS was “one of the reason” why BCCI might not agree sign the FTP.

The stand of BCCI is well known as they have been opposing the DRS under the pretext that it is ‘not 100 per cent accurate’. The newest FTP runs from May 2012 to April 2020. FTP is, basically, an eight-year schedule for the 10 Test-playing members, planned in such a way that all the teams ‘equally’ play against each other, both at home and away.

But, BCCI’s mark is clearly seen in the current FTP as the brazenness is evident from the fact that between 2012 and 2020, India is scheduled to play only two Tests and three ODIs in Bangladesh, and none at home against them. India, shockingly, have never played a Test against Bangladesh at home since that country got the Test status way back in 1999.

The ICC has its reason to push DRS as it feels if DRS is implemented across the board it could fetch revenues of up to $15 million.

According to that document, Srinivasan strictly told the ICC Executive Board that the BCCI could “unilaterally terminate” the FTP for two reasons.

“Mr. Srinivasan explained that the BCCI’s position was that it wished to retain the right to unilaterally terminate the FTP agreement: (a) in the event of certain financial or structural changes emanating from the implementation of certain recommendations from the Woolf Report; and (b) should it be required to use DRS in any bilateral matches,” the document reads.

“Mr. Srinivasan reminded the BCCI’s objection to DRS and explained that if it was decided that DRS ought to be applied in a series in which India was playing then it would refuse to participate,” document further adds.

ICC CEO David Richardson, on the other hand, recently informed the media about the BCCI’s rigid stand over the DRS.

He claimed that: “The ongoing debate over the DRS was part of the reason why the BCCI was not prepared to sign the FTP agreement and that unless the status quo in respect of DRS remains, then the BCCI would refuse to sign.”

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