Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) is likely to back the candidature of Singapore, Imran Khwaja over New Zealand’s Gregor Barclay when the elections for the post of Chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC) takes place in two weeks.
Khwaja and Barclay are the only two candidates contesting for the Chairman’s post and the 16-member all-powerful ICC Board members are set to vote during the first week of December.
Khwaja, the Singapore-based Lawyer is currently the Interim Chairman of the ICC, former president of the Singapore Cricket Association and has sat at the ICC Board since 2008.
The ICC’s annual quarterly meeting began on Monday and the electronic voting process will involve the 16 Board of Directors - 12 from the Full Member Test playing nations, three Associate Member countries and one independent female director (Indra Nooyi of Pepsi Co).
“Our position at SLC is very clear and we do not want this ‘Big Three’ concept to continue anymore,” a high-ranking official of SLC told the Daily News yesterday.
“We are actually concerned about our financial situation and the ‘Big Three’ concept is not going to help our cause at all,” he further elaborated.
It is likely that India along with South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia are set to vote for Barclay, who backs teams playing more bilateral series’ which suits the financial model of these boards in harsh economic climate.
Meanwhile, Khwaja, has the backing of the Pakistan Cricket Board and he is an advocate of increasing ICC events which will increase the revenue pool of Associate Nations.
“Whichever way the country and the SLC is benefitting we would stand with that stance whether it may be by playing in more bilateral series or by playing in ICC organised events,” he explained.
“But for the moment we would like to remain independent and look what are the financial benefits that the country would gain before making a final call,” he added.
Khwaja and Barclay will need at least 11 votes (two third majority) to win the elections and if neither candidate gets that number of votes after the first-round, then another round of voting will take place.
