Kiwi Alan Isaac to be nominated for ICC role

New Zealand Cricket (NZC) chairman Alan Isaac is in line to become the next International Cricket Council (ICC) vice-president after Australian officials backed down from pushing former prime minister John Howard for the role today.

Isaac will become the joint nominee of New Zealand and Australia for the ICC role, ending a controversial episode when the ICC member nations rejected the nomination of Howard this month.

The ICC asked Australia and New Zealand to renominate a candidate, and Cricket Australia (CA) today supported New Zealand's nomination of Isaac.

"In light of ICC's rejection of the nomination of John Howard, the two boards have had to consider a way forward," NZC chief executive Justin Vaughan said tonight.

"The NZC board decided current chairman Alan Isaac was eminently qualified for the role and put his name forward for consideration to Cricket Australia."

CA resolved not to put forward any alternative candidate and to support the nomination of Isaac as the joint nominee.

Vaughan noted that the CA board confirmed its disappointment in the ICC's rejection of the Howard nomination but fully supported the nomination of Isaac.

"New Zealand Cricket was also very disappointed with the rejection of John Howard's nomination by the ICC but believes Alan Isaac is an outstanding nominee.

"Alan has a strong cricket and sporting administration background and also brings to the table a strong record as a practitioner and adviser in organisational governance, along with business and financial acumen."

Isaac said that he was honoured and humbled to receive the nomination but, noting that it still required ICC acceptance and confirmation, believed it inappropriate to comment at this time.

Based on an international rotation system, it is New Zealand and Australia's turn to jointly nominate a vice-president candidate to the ICC.

New Zealand originally wanted former NZC chairman Sir John Anderson for the vice-presidency but Australia pushed for Howard, who won the nomination after the two boards established an independent committee to resolve the issue.

Once Howard was rejected by the ICC, Anderson said he did not want to be forwarded as an alternative nominee.

The former Australian prime minister's nomination was voted down at an ICC executive board meeting in Singapore in early July by six of 10 test-playing nations voting mainly along racial lines.

His election should have been a formality as, by convention, the vice-presidency changes hands every two years on a rotational basis. After two years the vice-president becomes the ICC president.

- NZPA