Wellington, Mar 29 (IANS): The International Cricket Council's (ICC) chief executive officer Geoff Allardice has said that the world body of the sport is planning to bring in parity in prize money for men's and women's tournaments from 2024 to 2031.

"One of the things that we did at the start of the cycle was we projected through this event cycle -- most of the ICC's finances are done with an eight-year view -- and what we've been trying to do over this cycle is bridge the gap between the women's prize money and the men's prize money," Allardice was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.com.

The ICC's chief executive made the statement when asked about the difference in the prize money of men's and women's World Cups.

"We are about to start discussions around the next cycle and one of the starting points for that discussion is going to be trying to get parity for the finishing positions of teams in women's events and comparable men's events. So we're not there yet, but we're on the journey to getting towards prize money parity," he said.

Allardice hailed the standard of play and blueprinted the future of women's cricket through global events in a press conference at the Basin Reserve in Wellington ahead of the World Cup semi-finals.

"The competitiveness of cricket has been a joy to watch and the strides the teams have taken forward over the last five years or so, in the standard of play and the excitement of the tournament, I think is something that needs to be commented upon. The number of close finishes, as cricket fans you sit there glued to your seat," he said.

"To get down to the last ball of the group stage before the semi-finalists were confirmed, I think it is a great endorsement of the standard of play," Allardice said.