ECB visa crackdown leaves overseas amateur club cricketers ineligible for climax of 2024 league season

From 1 January 2019, all matches between ICC members have been given full T20 international status.

However, many of those who play for Associate nations outside the top-20 T20 sides in the men’s game have never been paid to play cricket and the same applies to most of those outside the top-16 of the women’s game.

In what appears to be a broader tightening up of their obligations to the Home Office, the ECB have also passed on a list of names of those deemed to have potentially breached the terms of their visa.

Earlier this summer, the ECB published a redrafted version of its Home Office Immigration Rules for Cricket Overview with notes circulated to county boards for distribution to clubs.

An ECB spokesperson said: “As a governing body we are expected to maintain immigration compliance within the sport, so registered players from the recreational game are captured within the annual audit.

“These are players who are not normally resident in the UK and will be here under various entry permissions.

“As these are immigration rules, the ECB has no power to ‘clear’ a player. We have a duty to report any breaches or potential immigration breaches to the Home Office, and would contact the club to make them aware and explain why.”

The ECB has largely left it up to county boards, leagues and clubs themselves to enforce eligibility in the past.

It is understood this year, however, ECB staff have personally contacted a number of players urging them to stop playing league cricket.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “Immigration brings many benefits to the UK, but it must be controlled and delivered through a fair system.

“We expect sports governing bodies to ensure all players within their remit are compliant with their visa conditions and the wider immigration system. This includes an assessment of those who qualify as professional sportspeople.”