Melbourne (PTI): New Zealand's Greg Barclay was on Saturday unanimously re-elected as chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC) for a second two-year term.

Barclay was unopposed following the withdrawal of Zimabwe's Tavengwa Mukuhlani from the process, and the ICC Board reaffirmed its full support to the New Zealander to continue at the helm.

"It is an honour to be re-elected as the Chair of the International Cricket Council and I would like to thank my fellow ICC Directors for their support," said Barclay on his re-appointment.

Over the last two years we have made significant strides forward with the launch of our global growth strategy that provides clear direction to build a successful and sustainable future for our sport.

It is an exciting time to be involved in cricket and I look forward to continuing to work closely with our Members to strengthen the game in our core markets as well as grow it beyond that, ensuring more of the world can enjoy cricket.

Barclay, an Auckland-based commercial lawyer, was originally appointed as the ICC Chair in November 2020. He was previously the Chair of New Zealand Cricket (NZC) and was a director of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup in 2015.

He being elected unopposed also means that he had the backing of the mighty BCCI in the 17-member board.

I would like to congratulate Greg on his re-appointment as ICC Chair, as the continuity his leadership will provide is in the best interests of the sport. I therefore decided to withdraw my candidacy, said Mukuhlani.

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New Delhi (PTI): Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor had a witty take on Kerala's name change on Tuesday, asking what happens now to the terms "Keralite" and "Keralan" for the "denizens" of the new "Keralam".

In a lighter vein, Tharoor said 'Keralamite' sounds like a microbe and 'Keralamian' like a rare earth mineral.

The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday approved the proposal for altering the name of Kerala to Keralam.

Ahead of the Cabinet decision announcement, Tharoor said, "All to the good, no doubt, but a small linguistic question for the Anglophones among us: what happens now to the terms 'Keralite' and 'Keralan' for the denizens of the new 'Keralam'?

"'Keralamite' sounds like a microbe and 'Keralamian' like a rare earth mineral ! @CMOKerala might want to launch a competition for new terms resulting from this electoral zeal," he said, sharing the media report on the name change.

The Legislative Assembly of Kerala passed a resolution on June 24, 2024 to alter the name of Kerala to Keralam'.

Thereafter, the government of Kerala requested the government of India to take necessary steps to amend the First Schedule to the Constitution by altering the name of Kerala to Keralam according to Article 3 of the Constitution.

The matter regarding the alteration of the name Kerala to Keralam was considered in the Ministry of Home Affairs, government of India and with the approval of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, the draft note for the Cabinet for changing Kerala to Keralam was circulated to the Department of Legal Affairs and Legislative Department, and the Ministry of Law and Justice for their comments.

The Department of Legal Affairs and Legislative Department, and the Ministry of Law and Justice have concurred with the proposal for the alteration of Kerala as Keralam.

After approval of the Union Cabinet, the president of India will refer a Bill, namely the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 to the State Legislative Assembly of Kerala for expressing its views under the proviso to Article 3 of the Constitution of India.

After receipt of the views of the State Legislative Assembly of Kerala, the government of India will take further action and the recommendation of the president will be obtained for the introduction of the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 for the alteration of Kerala as Keralam in Parliament.

Meanwhile, on Monday night, Tharoor said he was truly pleased to see C Rajagopalachari honoured by a statue at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

"He was its first Indian occupant as the only Indian Governor-General of India, before we became a Republic and he yielded his seat to the new President. I have long admired his convictions and was a strong supporter of his Swatantra Party in my student days," Tharoor said.

"His set of values and principles -- liberal economics and support for free enterprise, combined with social justice; strong anchoring in Indian civilization and religious faith but without a shred of communal bigotry; and a staunch faith in the rights & freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution, including keeping the government out of our kitchens, bedrooms and libraries -- remain mine to this day," the Congress MP said.

It is sad that there are so few left to follow him today, Tharoor added on X.