Indians urged to sign up

The Indian cricket board yesterday advised the Indian team to accept an International Cricket Council commercial contact that has cast a shadow on this month's Champions Trophy limited-overs tournament.

The entire Indian team have refused to sign the mandatory contract, which requires them to forgo individual endorsements during leading one-day tournaments – the quadrennial World Cup and the biennial Champions Trophy. The contract prohibits them from endorsing any products which clash with the international body's tournament sponsors.

After initial reservations, all the other 11 participating teams have signed the contract, which applies from one month before to a month after the premier events. Cricketers who do not sign will not be allowed by the world body to play in the Champions Trophy, scheduled from 12 to 30 September in the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo.

The Indian players, who have multiple individual sponsors and will be the most affected, have refused to accept it. Yesterday, the Indian board president, Jagmohan Dalmiya, urged players to sign the controversial contracts following an assurance by the ICC that it would consider the players' view in future commercial tie-ups. "I have a word of advice... You should agree to abide by the [contract's] terms," Dalmiya said in an open letter to the Indian team captain Sourav Ganguly. "Since your viewpoints with regard to the sponsorship contracts have been well received by the International Cricket Council, it would be fitting to respond positively."

Dalmiya returned to India yesterday from an ICC meeting in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where the world body extended the deadline for India to name its team after discussions with its defiant players. Dalmiya said the ICC also assured India that the cricketers' viewpoint would receive paramount consideration in future contracts.