Greg Barclay elected ICC's Independent Chair

New Zealand Cricket (NZC) head Greg Barclay has been elected as the ICC's new Independent Chairman as he comfortably defeated Singapore's Imran Khwaja to succeed India's Shashank Manohar.

The appointment was carried out during ICC's annual quarterly meeting on Tuesday. The electronic voting process involved 16 board of directors -- 12 from full member (Test playing nations), three associate countries and one independent female director (Indra Nooyi of PepsiCo).

"It is an honour to be elected as the Chair of the ICC and I would like to thank my fellow ICC Directors for their support. I hope we can come together to lead the sport and emerge from the global pandemic in a strong position and poised for growth," Barclay said.

"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.

"I take my position as a custodian of the game very seriously and am committed to working on behalf of all 104 ICC Members to create a sustainable future for our sport," he added.

The Kiwi won 11-5, receiving the all important winning vote from the embattled Cricket South Africa in the second round of voting.

He had received 10 votes to Khwaja's six in the first round last week, but as per existing rules the winner needs 11 - a two-thirds majority of the 16-person ICC Board as the 17th member is CEO Manu Sawhney who is without voting rights. It is understood that India, England, Australia along with New Zealand voted for Barclay, who backs teams playing more bilateral series which suits the financial model of these boards in harsh economic climate.

Khwaja, on the other hand, had the support of the Pakistan Cricket Board. The former Singapore cricket board chief is an advocate of increasing ICC events which will increase the revenue pool of associate nations.

Barclay, an Auckland-based commercial lawyer, has been a director of NZC since 2012. He is currently serves as NZC's representative on the board of the ICC but will step down from the position to lead the world body in an independent capacity.

Barclay was a director of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2015 and is a former board member and chairman of the Northern Districts Cricket Association. He is also an experienced company director holding board positions with various New Zealand and Australian companies. 

(Image: AP)