Sharad Pawar is too busy for president's role, says the former ICC Chief Executive

Sharad Pawar is too busy for ICC president's job, says Malcolm Speed

Sharad Pawar is too busy for president's role, says the former ICCu00a0Chief Executive

"The decision of the ICC members to reject the nomination of Howard for the ICC presidency is a disgrace and an insult to both countries," said Speed.

"The (Howard's) rejection is a symptom of the wider malaise that afflicts world cricket and its dysfunctional governing body. The current system of rotating the ICC presidency is the fourth such system to have been introduced and failed since 1995," said Speed, who was the chief executive of the ICC from 2001 to 2008.

Howard was Cricket Australia and New Zealand Cricket's nominee for the post. However, Opposition from Asian and African nations sealed the fate of Howard at the ICC board at a meeting in Singapore yesterday.

Commenting on Pawar, the man who is to be the next ICC president, Speed said: "Pawar, is the Minister for Agriculture in the Indian government ufffd a serious full-time job, feeding 1.2 billion people. He is a good and fair man but he will be working part-time as ICC president and, take it from me, he knows little about cricket administration. I was present at several ICC board meetings he attended. ICC meetings generally last two days.
Pawar attended for one hour and was then replaced by one of the Board of Control for Cricket in India apparatchiks. They were concerned that he was too busy and would be too reasonable."

Speed said, Howard was rejected because he would have foiled the ICC's saboteurs. "Howard has been rejected because his appointment would provide ICC with strong leadership that would thwart the ambitions of several current administrators to downgrade and devalue the role of the ICC. Howard would have stood in their path. The role requires strength of character ufffd a leader, diplomat, statesman and politician. The ICC board is as political as any political party. The countries that voted him down want a compliant figurehead who will do their bidding," remarked Speed.

Meanwhile, Cricket Australia chairman Jack Clarke said India were not the only one to vote against Howard. "'I can't reveal (likely) votes but don't think India were the only person who voted against us," Clarke said.

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