'India pay the bills, delivered a scenario where they would know': ICC's approach vehemently blasted

This year's ICC Men's T20 World Cup has been nothing less than interesting. The 2024 edition of the marquee tournament featured 20 teams divided into four groups of five teams. But this time, the International Cricket Council (ICC) pre-seeded the top eight teams, which gave them an idea of whom they would face in the Super 8 stage and how which group they would be a part of. The decision is seen to be controversial as it doesn't favour the team that has emerged as the table topper. The new rules drew widespread criticism as veterans and analysts criticized the move. A former English cricketer has not criticized the ICC, as he claims the council is trying to give an edge to the Rohit Sharma-led Team India.

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ICC's pre-seeding rule gets brutally slammed by a former English cricketer

Former England cricketer Mark Boucher criticises the ICC's new pre-seeding strategy, believing it to be influenced in favour of the India squad under Rohit Sharma and the nation's cricket fans.

"How do you organise a competition around the fact that one team knows exactly, should everything go to plan, that it will be playing their semifinal on a particular day and at a particular venue when everybody in the opposite group has no idea? And that is what it should be. You shouldn't have any clue. The group thing was pre-ordained simply because there was no seeding between finishing first or second in your group stage and that is wrong.

"I found that astonishing, and we all know why that is the case. It is because for the TV audiences, as far as India are concerned, pay the bills and therefore were kind of promised or delivered a scenario where they would exactly know where they would play their semifinal should they reach it. I find that incredible," Mark Boucher said on the Cricket Weekly Podcast.

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Team India has topped Group A after remaining undefeated over Ireland, Pakistan and the US, while the match-up vs Canada was a washout. It allowed them to reign supreme, while the US secured qualification by being the number two team. The Rohit Sharma-led side will be in action against a dominant Afghanistan in Bridgetown, Barbados as they commence the Super 8 stage.