Overview
- The ICC board, which met in Ahmedabad on Monday on the sidelines of the IPL 2026 final, resolved to set up a committee to assess how franchise T20 leagues can be aligned with the international schedule.
- The committee’s remit is explicitly limited to working within the sport’s current structure and the board has not yet published the panel’s membership, timetable, or concrete proposals.
- At the same Ahmedabad meeting the ICC also suspended Cricket Canada, approved changes to the women’s international schedule, and authorised trials of a pink ball for Tests affected by bad light.
- The decision responds to long‑running pressure from boards that franchise leagues, launched by the IPL in 2008, are drawing players away from national duty and complicating the Future Tours Programme, a concern sharpened by BCCI plans to expand the IPL’s match count.
- Next steps to watch are the committee’s terms of reference and any recommendations on player availability or league caps, which could change how boards, leagues, and players negotiate contracts and schedules.