Canada Suspended - (Source: AFP)
On Monday, June 1, the ICC concluded its board meeting in Ahmedabad, where the Jay Shah-led council announced historic decisions that will reshape the game going forward. Besides the new rules and amendments, the ICC has also suspended a T20 World Cup 2026 team.
In a significant move, the International Cricket Council has suspended Canada after finding the North American Cricket Board guilty of serious breaches. The board didn’t reveal the level or nature of the offence but have suspended Canada’s membership.
ICC Suspend Canada Cricket Association
The Jay Shah-led counil issued a press release, where they officially confirmed suspending the Canada Cricket Board indefinitely due to breach of protocols and going against their oath to keep the sysytem free and fair of mischeives and suspicious activites.
"The ICC Board resolved to suspend Cricket Canada from ICC membership with immediate effect due to serious breaches of its membership obligations," read ICC's press release.
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Will Canada Play Future ICC Events?
Notably, the ICC, in their press release, clarified that the players interest and security is of their paramount interest. Hence, despite the suspension, Canada's team will continue to feature in ICC events.
"The ICC Board was mindful of the importance of protecting the interests of Canadian players and ensuring they are not disadvantaged by the governance issues affecting the national governing body. Accordingly, Canadian national representative teams will continue to be eligible to participate in ICC events during the period of suspension," it added.
At present, Canada's last appearance was in T20 World Cup where they were drawn in the same group as South Africa and New Zealand. The team finsihed last on the group with four defeats.
They will now have to qualify for 2028 T20 World Cup via qualifiers.
Why Did ICC Suspend Canada Cricket?
There were several reasons behind Cricket Canada's suspension. Earlier, there were reports that a certain Lawrence Bishnoi gang, from Punjab and Haryana, is learnt to be involved in the fixing scandal that rocked Canada cricket.
There were reports that the gang members were involved in team selection. “So, they straight up said this wording to him, that ‘You must take care of these guys. These guys should not get dropped from the team. If they do, you are in trouble,” CBC quoted an unnamed source, who spoke to the team member.
“I think people in the cricketing world are not any different from the general population, and when fear comes into the picture. They’re very, very disheartened and scared, so they don’t want to talk about it," Cricket Canada Insider told CBC.
As per the documentary, Canada skipper Dilpreet Bajwa was actively involved in the spot-fixing incident at the World Cup. The 23-year-old was named as the team captain just weeks ahead of the competition — an appointment which raised eyebrows.
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