Despite reservations from powerful boards, such as the BCCI, the ICC has started the process to finalise the host countries for several global men's and women's events in the next cycle of 2023-2031, by the end of 2020. As a first step, the ICC recently asked all its members to send in expression of interest (EoI) by March 15. The ICC will then use a bidding model to finalise the host country for each of the events.

To work out how the entire process works, ESPNcricinfo sought answers from the ICC on several key questions and put together the following FAQs based on the answers:

How many tournaments are there in the 2023-31 FTP cycle for which EoIs have been sought?

Twenty-eight overall. This includes eight men's, eight women's and eight Under-19 events (four men and four women) along with four World Test Championship finals.

What is/are the timeline(s) for releasing the EoIs?

The ICC has requested that all members, both Full Members and Associates, make their submissions by March 15 so the EoI responses received can be collated and presented to the ICC Board for their consideration during the next meeting in the last week of March. Post that meeting, the ICC intends to follow this up with a formal request for proposal (RFP) process, for which all interested members will have six months to make their formal submissions.

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Will the calendar be worked out first - listing which tournaments at what time of the year - before the EoIs go out?

No. The ICC believes it is better to first get the feedback from the members on their choices and use that to shape the timing and location of the global events. The EoIs will help the ICC construct a draft calendar for hosting its events based on the responses received. This will give the ICC the starting point for members to develop a full international calendar. According to the ICC, this approach to plan the full FTP programme has been successfully employed over the last two cycles (2007-15 and 2015-23).

ICC's proposed tournaments in the 2023-2031 cycle ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Can a country bid for more than one ICC event?

Yes. According to the ICC, the EoI is the first step. It will also allow the members to work with their respective governments on long-term planning and evaluate what will work best for the development of their sport in their respective markets. The ICC has stressed that the joint effort between the host countires and their respective governments is a must to accrue full benefits of hosting an event.

Why was bidding felt to be a better option?

The model provides an equal opportunity to all members, if they meet the criteria to bid for hosting the events. The ICC has said this is a very common model used globally for a number of other sports and global events. The ICC also said it had used this model previously and is a "central plank of our ambitions to grow the game globally."

How does the bidding process work?

Once the EoIs have been submitted and shared, a formal RFP process, which will run for six months, will be opened. Interested members will be asked to respond to the RFP and submit proposals to host ICC events based on the RFP criteria which will then be considered for approval.

Is the ICC expecting bidding for a tournament to be a revenue-generator?

The ICC has said its preference is to stage events where there is support from the government in hosting the event and development of the sport in the country. Revenue is "just one of the many criteria" which will be detailed in the RFP that will be considered along with a range of other things including infrastructure, growth in the market and development of the sport.

What are the various eligibility criteria?

There will be a host of eligibility criteria including the required infrastructure to stage the events, which differs depending on the size of the event, the current cricketing eco-system in the market, the growth potential and development of infrastructure in place. Guarantees in relation to visas, tax exemptions, customs, security will also be a requirement.