New Delhi: India on Thursday made a strong plea for the high-profile cricket tournament to be granted to "rightful" claimants Asia, just three days before the hosts for the 2011 World Cup are to be announced.
Rooting for Asia, Board of Control for Cricket in India President Sharad Pawar said the Cup should come their way given the immense popularity of the game in the four Test playing countries and the large fan base.
"Our claim is a rightful one. Our proposal is not about India alone. To see matches being held in more countries would mean more participation, we hope to get this opportunity," he said after the official launch of the Champions Trophy in New Delhi.
The Asian bid faces stiff competition from a joint bid by Australia and New Zealand. The ICC's Executive Board would meet in Dubai on Sunday to decide the hosts for the quadrennial extravaganza.
International Cricket Council President Ehsan Mani, on his part, agreed that Asia was a major player in world cricket.
"Asia is important for World Cup and ICC. We made an important decision in Sydney recently that every third World Cup would be held in Asia," Mani said.
He, however, refused to speculate on who would win the bid.
"It is not something I can speculate on. We have to ensure a level playing field for all. We remain neutral. India is an important member. But ultimately it is a decision which is to be made by the (ICC) Board which requires support of seven countries."
Mani also said ICC was contemplating having an ICC event every year with commitment from each of its members.
"We are looking at alternatives, possibly a 20twenty championship. We are not hard and fast about any tournament, we are trying out different formats. We have to show a degree of flexibility and with commitment from every member, we hope to have an ICC event every year. We will also discuss the impact of (such a move) with our global partners GCC and see how it spans out. We would also need the full support of BCCI (in this)," Mani said.
"We are never shy of experimenting. Super Series was a good concept, we tested it but found that it did not work out as we had planned. We have to see how things go and take a decision depending on the response," he added.
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