ICC boss bats off concerns over game's youth appeal

LONDON - England's top cricket administrator may feel young people no longer care about cricket, but the man running the sport's global governing body is adamant youth interest is rising worldwide.

And David Richardson, the chief executive of the International Cricket Council (ICC), added that next year's World Cup in England and Wales represents a brilliant opportunity to prove the doubters wrong.

Colin Graves, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chairman, sparked controversy with his recent comment that young people "are just not attracted to cricket". It appeared he was trying to justify the proposed introduction of a new 100-ball format into the English game in 2020.