Former Australian PM to join ICC

The former Aussie PM says cricket is the game 'he's loved all his life'.

Former Australian Prime Minister John Howard is set to become International Cricket Council president from 2012.

The 70-year-old will initially become vice-president later this year before taking up the presidency.

The role is held by ex-England and Wales Cricket Board chief David Morgan, who will be succeeded by India's Sharad Pawar in the summer.

"Cricket has been one of my lifelong passions and it will be a privilege to serve this great game," said Howard.

An Australasian is due to hold the ICC presidency from mid-2012.

In the role, which rotates on a two-year basis, Howard will have to balance the concerns of 10 nations.

"I look forward to working in the interests of the game I've loved all my life." Howard told reporters in Sydney.

The appointment follows months of debate between the Australian and New Zealand cricket boards about who their candidate would be.

Cricket Australia picked Howard as their preferred candidate, but New Zealand reportedly preferred their former cricket chairman John Anderson.

606: DEBATE Give your reaction to John Howard's ICC nomination

Sir Rod Eddington, a former chief executive of British Airways, was asked to work as an independent member on both countries' selection committees.

"We are pleased that an eminent candidate in John Howard has agreed, after an exhaustive process, to take the role of joint Australia-New Zealand nominee for the ICC presidency," a Cricket Australia and New Zealand statement read.

"It was an extremely difficult decision and ultimately relied on the input of Sir Rod Eddington, whom both cricket boards respect enormously."

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