ICC shortlists Bindra, Patel for CEO's post

NEW DELHI, March 15: India���s clout in world cricket got more muscle on Saturday with a sub-committee of the International Cricket Council (ICC) announcing the name of former BCCI president Inderjit Singh Bindra as one of the two candidates for the post of CEO.
With Sharad Pawar slated to become the world body's president in 2010, Bindra's appointment to the second most important post in ICC could increase India's influence even more in the game.
Malcolm Speed, the Aussie CEO of ICC, is retiring in June this year. BCCI sources told TOI that its sub-committee recommended Bindra and Imtiaz Patel's name for the CEO's post to the executive committee.
Patel is a South African of Indian origin and heads the broadcast network Supersport. The ICC will meet on March 17 and 18 in Dubai to deliberate on Speed's successor.
According to sources, IS Bindra was initially not willing to throw his hat in the ring, but relented on the insistence of BCCI and the boards of other sub-continental nations.
Bindra's chances of replacing Speed, BCCI sources said, "depend on the whether ICC's executive committee agrees to Bindra's terms and conditions". It's learnt that Bindra is not too keen on shifting base to Dubai.
Then, there is the issue of age eligibility. There were concerns over the age-rule factor - UAE does not encourage employment in the country for people above 60 years.
Bindra is above 65. Pawar, however, wrote a letter to ICC and all full member countries, pointing out that the age-bar rule does not concern the ICC headquarters. This letter seems to have had its impact. Otherwise, Bindra's name would not have been recommended to the executive committee.
There's another twist in this tale. Sources told TOI that if Bindra does not become the CEO, BCCI will try to negotiate with member countries and ICC countries to create a special post for him. It all depends on what view the executive committee takes. "Everything is now under consideration and negotiations are on,'' the source said.
The sub-committee comprised of Ray Mali (ICC president), David Morgan (ECB chairman), Creagh O'Connor (Cricket Australia chairman) and Pawar. Pawar, Bindra, BCCI vice-president Lalit Modi and BCCI president-elect Shashank Manohar are all in Dubai now, waiting for the verdict.