WELLINGTON • New International Cricket Council (ICC) chairman Greg Barclay yesterday said his organisation must deliver its pinnacle events over the next three years or there will be serious financial consequences for the sport.

The Covid-19 pandemic has forced the ICC to reschedule three of its world tournaments, including this year's men's T20 World Cup, to next November.

Barclay, who was confirmed as chairman of the world governing body on Tuesday, said it was contracted to deliver them within the current broadcasting agreement, failing which there would be serious financial consequences.

"We have got to deliver the world events that are to come and those that are postponed," the New Zealander said of the agreements that expire in mid-2023.

"Not just for the cricketing outcomes but there are commercial concerns as well."

Besides the men's Twenty20 World Cup, which will still be held in Australia, and the next women's World Cup, which has been moved to 2022, the men's 2023 World Cup in India has also been pushed back from February and March to October and November that year.

"If we fail to deliver all of those events, then we will be penalised by the broadcasters and we won't receive the last of the ongoing payments," added Barclay.

"That, in turn, is going to affect the ICC's ability to invest in its own programmes and enable it to make distributions to members. Unfortunately, a lot of the ICC members are heavily reliant on those disbursements."

Barclay has replaced interim chairman Imran Khwaja, who temporarily took over from Indian Shashank Manohar after his second two-year term ended in July.

Singaporean Imran, who is also a partner at law firm Tan Rajah & Cheah, had been deputy chairman of the ICC since 2017 and was the former Singapore Cricket Association president.

Barclay, who has served as New Zealand Cricket's representative on the ICC board for the last six years, has stepped down from that role to lead the global body.

The commercial lawyer said that while the election process had been "drawn out", he was keen to get to work. One of his tasks is to ensure women's cricket continues to "move towards parity" amid the pandemic.

He is also eager to develop the game in non-traditional markets and believes the United States is an area it can tap into.

"We have to look at regions where there is good potential for growth," he said. "The US appears to be the place to go. It has a massive advantage in its traditional audiences from sub-continental Asia. We should continue with that."

REUTERS