Former ICC match referee Chris Broad has made a startling revelation, claiming he was once instructed to show leniency toward India in a slow-over rate case.
Broad, who officiated in 622 men’s international matches across formats, shared the disclosure in an interview with The Telegraph, terming it an example of India’s growing influence over cricket’s governing body.
The former England cricketer did not specify which match the incident involved but said that India were about four overs behind schedule and faced a potential fine when he received a call instructing him to “be lenient” because it was India. “India were three, four overs down at the end of a game, so it constituted a fine. I got a phone call saying, ‘Be lenient, find some time because it’s India’. And it’s like, right, OK. So we had to find some time, bring it down below the threshold,” Broad recalled.
He added that in the very next match, the same situation occurred with Indian captain Sourav Ganguly showing no urgency to speed up play. “The same thing happened. He didn’t listen to any of the hurry-ups and so I phoned and said, ‘What do you want me to do now?’ and I was told ‘just do him’,” Broad said.
Broad, who served as an ICC match referee until February 2024, revealed that he was willing to continue his role but his contract was not renewed. Reflecting on his two-decade tenure, he said, “I dodged a lot of bullets, both politically and physically.”
He further claimed that the ICC’s management weakened against India’s financial dominance after the departure of Vince van der Bijl, the former umpires’ manager. “India got all the money and has now taken over the ICC,” Broad alleged, concluding that the position has become far more political than before.
