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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Pakistan reports two more polio cases; Total tally now 52
ISLAMABAD: At least two more cases of poliovirus were reported in Pakistan, taking the number of infections to 52 so far this year, a report said on Friday.
“The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health has confirmed the detection of two more wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases in Pakistan," an official statement said.
The fresh infections — a boy and a girl — were reported from the Dera Ismail Khan district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.
“Genetic sequencing of the samples collected from the children is underway," the statement read. Dera Ismail Khan, one of the seven polio-endemic districts of southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, has reported five polio cases so far this year.
Of the 52 cases in the country this year, 24 are from Balochistan, 13 from Sindh, 13 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and one each from Punjab and Islamabad.
There is no cure for polio. Only multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine and completion of the routine vaccination schedule for all children under the age of five can keep them protected.
