The ECB's appeal is being delayed by the ongoing haggling with the Zimbabwe Cricket Union over the final compensation figure due to the Africans for the cancelled fixture.

Lamb's tightening of the purse strings will hit the sport at every level from the local amateur teams right up to the England team.

But ECB spokesman Andrew Walpole said: "We're a £60million-a-year business - that's our annual turnover - so it's a significant cut but something cricket as a business can cope with.

"The shortfall will be spread across the different areas of the game and shared by everyone.

"The cuts range right across the spectrum, from the grass-roots through to first-class cricket and the international side."

Outlining the ECB's optimism over their forthcoming appeal against the ICC's move, Walpole added: "We're facing the shortfall because the ICC withheld our share of World Cup profits because we didn't fulfil our fixture in Harare.

"However, we intend to challenge their move and feel we have a strong case, so it may be possible to claw some of that money back.

"The ICC are withholding the money pending a legal process which is ongoing at the moment and likely to take several months."