Who will run world cricket? ICC has no time-frame in place to elect new chairperson

MUMBAI: It's been two months and 18 days since former BCCI president Shashank Manohar stepped down as the independent chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC) on July 1 following a four-year term, handing the interim charge to deputy vice-chairman Imran Khwaja until the ICC could hold fresh elections.
Further, it's been three months and 20 days since the ICC board met on May 28 to discuss the ballot process to bring on board the next chairperson.

And yet, the game's global governing body hasn't reached close to any conclusion so far on what procedures it is required to follow to hold an election for a new chairperson.
TOI asked ICC if it has come "any closer to deciding on a date for the board to meet and discuss the procedures for a ballot".
The ICC spokesperson replied saying: "The Chairperson election process is ongoing, and the (ICC) Board are giving it due and careful consideration as you would expect. The business of the ICC continues to be guided by the Board as we collectively focus on emerging from the global pandemic in the strongest possible position".
However, the governing body made it absolutely clear that no date has been discussed yet. By the end of September, the ICC will have gone for three months - in the middle of a pandemic - without a chairperson running the affairs of the game. This comes at a time when cricket's global economic policies are suffering in the present times and in urgent need of an overhaul.
TOI further asked the ICC if it has "thought about / discussed a tentative time-frame by which it will arrive at a conclusion on how these protocols should work" and "a tentative deadline by when it will be in a position to conduct the Annual General Meeting?"
The ICC, in its reply, said: "The two are separate issues. The ICC Board is keen to conclude the process to elect a new Chair and are giving it due and careful consideration. Whilst the ICC Annual Conference, of which the AGM is part, was postponed in light of the exceptional circumstances presented to us all by Covid-19".
With Covid-19 showing no signs of relenting, it is unclear how the ICC intends to resolve the process of conducting its annual conference.
As far as the election is concerned, the ICC board has been unable to decide if the ballot should be held by way of a simple majority or two-thirds.
The ICC intends to run a pre-election ballot to decide if the election should be held on the basis of a simple majority or two-thirds. Members say: "So, how would the pre-election ballot be held? On simple majority or two-thirds? Shouldn't that be decided by way of a simple majority? Two-third majority deciding a course of action will mean the ICC board is being dictated by two-third of the board and where's the logic in that?"
TOI asked ICC if its own constitution recommends any "time-frame until when a chairperson can continue in an interim role?" or whether "an interim chairperson can continue for as long as possible if there is no solution in place?"
The ICC, in its reply, once again maintained that: "The (ICC) Board is keen to conclude the process to elect a new Chair and has agreed, in line with the ICC constitution, that the Deputy Chairperson would act as Chair until a new Chairperson is elected in due course".
The ICC's present interim chairman is Imran Khwaja, a resident of Singapore, who - for the record - does not represent any of the ICC's full members on the board. "Things have reached a stage now where the 12 full-members of the ICC, and especially countries like India, England and Australia, are now waiting for an individual from Singapore to tell them how international cricket is going to be run," members say.