THE board of the International Cricket Committee (ICC) meeting, now ungoing in Dubai, will finalise the process of election, or re-election, of the Chairman.

There remains a certain degree of ambiguity around whether the incumbent Chairman Greg Barclay will continue but should he choose not to, Cricbuzz understands that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) may propose the name of Anurag Thakur.

There have been conflicting reports on whether Barclay will continue in the role of the ICC Chairman or not. As per the ICC constitution, he is eligible to contest two more times.

Thakur, a former president of the BCCI and a former director of the ICC, is eligible to contest, just as many other former presidents — from Sharad Pawar to N. Srinivasan. Current office-bearers, Sourav Ganguly and Jay Shah, are eligible too. Notably, Shah attended an ICC board meeting last year and has the required qualification now.

It was learnt that Thakur’s name cropped up a few times in BCCI’s internal discussions on the matter. Being a Minister in the Central Government, he is not qualified to hold a position in the BCCI, as per the Lodha reforms, but he is very much eligible to be the head of the ICC. Whether he will have the time to spare for cricket administration is another matter.

As previously reported by Cricbuzz, a section of the BCCI thinks the Chairman position should come India’s way, with next year’s 50-over World Cup set to be held in the country. When the World Cup was held in India last time around, in 2011, Sharad Pawar was the head of the ICC.

The BCCI, being an important player in the ICC, will have a large say in the election/re-election of the Chairman. The Indian cricket officials have a very good relationship with Barclay and it is unlikely that the BCCI will do anything to alter the current arrangement.

Things are expected to clear, though, when Barclay visits India — either next week (which is more likely) or next month. His itinerary could not be ascertained immediately but the New Zealander has agreed to visit Mumbai during the IPL, either on his way home from Dubai next week or on way to the UK in May.

Whether or not Barclay will continue should be known by May 9, when the nomination for the position will take place. As was the rule last year, the candidates will be required to have two proposers from the 12 full members of the ICC and also will have to present their vision for the world body.

Should there be multiple candidates in the fray, the elections will be held on June 10. The candidate getting the two-third votes of the 15-member board will be declared the winner.

The process is expected to be formally approved at this week’s meeting to kick-start the election process. The new Chairman will assume office at the annual conference of the ICC, to be held in Birmingham in July. (Cricbuzz)