ICC Chairmanship: Only NZ's Gregor Barclay and Singapore's Imran Khwaja file nominations
New Delhi: New Zealand Cricket's Gregor Barclay and Imran Khwaja of Singapore are the only two prominent names who will be fighting for the ICC chairman's post to replace Shahshank Manohar.
October 18 was the last day for filing nominations and a one-month window has been kept by the ICC Board to see if it can have an unanimous candidate.
"As of now, it looks like there will be an election between Barclay and Khwaja, who is ICC's acting chairman. They are the only two who have filed nominations. Both have their share of support in board," a senior official, privy to developments in ICC Board, told PTI on Monday.
In a 17-member ICC board, 16 can cast their vote (17th member is CEO Manu Sawhney without voting rights) and as per the existing rules, either Barclay or Khwaja would need 11 votes (2/3rd of board) to become the next chairman.
In case Cricket South Africa (CSA) gets suspended by the ICC over government interference, then the number of voters will come down to 15.
However, in case Barclay fails to get 11 votes, Khwaja can still continue as the acting chairman of the ICC. A lot of major Test-playing nations are expected to rally behind Barclay.
While Colin Graves, the former England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chairman was the favourite to become the next ICC chief, it was learnt that he didn't file his nomination after it became certain that neither he is an unanimous choice nor does he have the numbers to win an election.
There is a buzz that the BCCI will lend support to Barclay against Khwaja, who is known to be close to a former ICC head, who will actively take interest in the election if it happens.
"Khwaja has some backing from at least two former ICC heads -- one who is also among the current Board of Directors and another who is still believed to have control of at least five votes," the senior official said.
The time in the interim will be used for hectic lobbying and in ensuring that one of the two (ideally Khwaja) pulls out, leading to an unanimous candidate.
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Extreme weather may pose risk to inflation, says RBI Bulletin
Mumbai (PTI): Extreme weather conditions may pose a risk to inflation, along with prolonged geopolitical tensions that could keep crude oil prices volatile, the Reserve Bank's April Bulletin said on Tuesday.
The retail based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has eased to 4.9 per cent in March after averaging 5.1 per cent in the preceding two months.
The Reserve Bank, which mainly factors in CPI while arriving at its bi-monthly monetary policy, has kept the key interest rate unchanged at 6.5 per cent since February 2023, citing concerns on the inflation front.
An article on 'State of the Economy' published in the Bulletin further said global growth momentum has been sustained in the first quarter of 2024, and the outlook for world trade is turning positive.
Treasury yields and mortgage rates are ticking up in major economies as expectations of interest rate cuts are being pared.
"In India, conditions are shaping up for an extension of a trend upshift in real GDP growth, backed by strong investment demand and upbeat business and consumer sentiments," the article said.
The RBI, however, said the views expressed in the Bulletin article are of the authors and do not represent the views of the Reserve Bank of India.
