Team India can donate to FICA: BCCI

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Mumbai: The Board of Control for Cricket in India has no objections to its players giving out five per cent of their match fee from ICC events to the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations, the governing body said on Sunday.

"We distribute the prize money to the players. It is entirely up to them what they do with it," BCCI Secretary Niranjan Shah said.

Shah's statement came in reponse to India captain Rahul Dravid writing to the BCCI last week that the players wanted to give five per cent of their prize money to FICA.

The FICA, formed in order to coordinate the players' associations functioning thorughout the cricketing nations, has had quite a few run-ins with the ICC over the player burnout issue too.

The Indian and Sri Lankan boards are the only two that are not affiliated to FICA which was set up in 1998 and recognised by ICC in 2003.

ICC has an understanding with FICA that players from all affiliated associations would contribute five per cent of their prize money from ICC tournaments to it.

Asked about rumours surrounding the reported pay cut of players, Shah said that there is no such issue and the revenue distribution system had been finalised at the Board's AGM way back in September.

The members felt that the entire earnings from TV and media rights should not go towards gross revenue of the Board. Instead, 70 per cent of it should be spent on member associations and infrastructure development, 26 per cent should go to the players and four per cent to the Board.

Out of the 26 per cent, 13 per cent has been earmarked for international players and the rest for domestic and junior cricketers.