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Indian Cricket League

The ICL owners are ready to issue formal legal proceedings against the ICC, the ECB and the BCCI as early as next month.

The ICL predated its fellow Twenty20 competition the Indian Premier League but it was the latter that flourished into a global phenomenon after it became the preferred domestic competition of both the BCCI and the ICC.

ICL owners Essel Sports Private Ltd, whose fixture programme is currently suspended, believe that both parties - as well as the ECB - have acted in restraint of trade and in breach of competition law in attempting to sideline high-profile players plying their trade in the ICL and deter others from signing in the future.

Participation in the ICL led to a number of issues for high-profile players, including the likes of New Zealand paceman Shane Bond and Pakistan pair Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Abdul Razzaq.

All encountered difficulty in fulfilling planned stints on the English county circuit - as did a host of others, including Lancashire's then captain Stuart Law - after being denied the relevant paperwork, while many players with ICL links were forced to put their international careers on hiatus while the behind-the-scenes wrangling continued.

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The inauguration of the Champions League Twenty20 also caused problems, with organisers refusing to host teams who had used registered ICL players in their domestic competitions.

Legal action has long been expected as ESPL seek to overturn what they deem to be an unfairly enforced status as a 'rebel' league.

They are now pursuing a ruling that they hope will bring an end to the perceived ICL boycott by the ECB, BCCI and ICC as well as seeking damages.

Press Association Sport understands that London-based legal firm Ingram Winter Green has written to the ECB, ICC and BCCI in an attempt to resolve the issue and have asked for a response by early December.

Should a satisfactory reply not be forthcoming by then it is thought that the firm will be instructed to open formal legal proceedings against the parties.

In the event that any such case is successful, similar action may be considered against the boards of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

The ECB, BCCI and ICC have thus far declined to comment.

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