Shashank Manohar has decided to stay on as ICC chairman, for a while at least © IDI/Getty Images
Shashank Manohar has agreed to defer his resignation as ICC chairman at least until the new governance and financial models are voted on at the next round of meetings in April.
The u-turn in Manohar’s stance, following his surprise resignation earlier this month, came after an ICC board resolution earlier this week that requested him to stay with “overwhelming support”.
“I respect the sentiments expressed by the Directors and the confidence they have reposed in me. In the light of this, and although my decision to depart due to personal reasons has not changed, I am willing to continue as Chairman till the responsibility as per the resolution is complete,” Manohar said in an ICC release.
“I have a duty to work with my colleagues to enable a smooth transition and continue our work on the governance of the ICC.”
On March 15, Manohar had caught most people unawares when he announced his decision to step down as ICC chairman, offering nothing more than “personal reasons” as an explanation. The development raised concerns over whether the new ICC constitution, for which Manohar was the driving force, that was approved in principle at the ICC meetings in February would now be passed at the April meetings, when specific points in the document will come up for vote.
In February, the BCCI and Sri Lanka Cricket had voted against the new constitution, while Zimbabwe Cricket abstained. Since then, the Bangladesh Cricket Board had also expressed reservations against some aspects of the new constitution, which needs an 8-2 majority vote to pass.
The Indian board’s primary objection to the new constitution is the financial model, according to which the BCCI stood to make substantially less than it did under the existing model, which was devised by the Big Three.
It was revealed that Manohar had met with the BCCI’s committee of administrators the evening before he announced his resignation to discuss the new ICC constitution, though he said he had already made up his mind to quit before the meeting.
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Source: ESPN Crickinfo