DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, CMC – New Zealander Greg Barclay is the new chairman of cricket’s World governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC).
Barclay, an Auckland-based commercial lawyer, has been a director of New Zealand Cricket (NZC) since 2012 and currently NZC’s representative on the board of the ICC.
“It is an honour to be elected as the chairman of the ICC and I would like to thank my fellow ICC Directors for their support,” he said in an ICC media release.
“I hope we can come together to lead the sport and emerge from the global (COVID-19) pandemic in a strong position and poised for growth.”
Barclay secured an 11th vote from Cricket South Africa in a second round of voting, to beat Imran Khwaja, who had been the interim chairman after Shashank Manohar stepped down from the post in July this year.
Barclay had secured 10 votes to Khwaja’s six in the first round of voting last week, but ICC stipulations meant he needed 11 – a two-thirds majority of the 16-member ICC board of directors. “I look forward to working in partnership 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,” he said.
“I take my position as a custodian of the game very seriously and I am committed to working on behalf of all 104 ICC members to create a sustainable future for our sport.“I’d like to thank Imran Khwaja for his leadership as acting ICC chairman during a difficult period for the game and I look forward to continuing a close working relationship with him in the future.”
Barclay will step down from his position at NZC to lead the ICC in an independent capacity.
He was a director of ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2015 and was a former board member and chairman of the Northern Districts Cricket Association in his homeland. Barclay is also an experienced company director, holding board positions with various New Zealand and Australian companies.
