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New Delhi: The International Cricket Council (ICC) will pump in about $300 million into developing the game worldwide, the governing body on Tuesday announced.
Haroon Lorgat, the ICC's CEO, said the initiative was "the biggest investment in global development by any sport outside football."
The ICC pledged around $40 million a year for seven years from 2009 to help its 94 associate and affiliate members, placed below the 10 test-playing teams.
"We want to see results that challenge world cricket's existing order," South African Lorgat, who took charge at the weekend, said in a statement.
Being the best
"We want to develop better players and structures on and off the field, giving everyone the chance to be the best they can be."
The current situation means that associates get only rare opportunities to rub shoulders with the sport's elite, mainly at the one-day World Cup.
Lorgat said the initiative was only made possible because of the International Cricket Council's lucrative commercial deals.
One such deal was the media rights agreement signed with ESPN STAR Sports in December 2006 which is reported to be worth around $1 billion.
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