More umpires result from ICC meeting

The hunt is on for a replacement for ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed who stands down in June 2008 © ICC

The ICC has decided to expand the number of Elite umpires from 10 to 12 and has also called on the West Indies Cricket board to carry out an investigation into allegations made against Marlon Samuels regarding his connections to a bookmaker. The announcements came at the end of the ICC board's two-day meeting in Dubai.

In increasing the number of Elite officials, the ICC acknowledged concerns over the pressure on umpires. The move was "to allow the leading officials to spend less time away from home and also allow them to work on their skills and mentor up-and-coming officials in their own domestic set-ups".

The ICC will also appoint five regional umpire coaches/mentors to work under the ICC umpires' manager. They will be responsible for working with the Elite and International Panel umpires from their region as well as all visiting umpires. All match appointments will be made by a four-man committee chaired by the ICC general manager - cricket. The moves come after a recommendation from the Umpires' Task Force which the ICC received in September.

Other outcomes included the formal appointment of David Morgan as the ICC's president-elect and Sharad Pawar as its vice-president. There were also constitutional amendments and the ICC president will now have a two-year term without the option of a third term. As expected, the board decided to remove the nomination committee and the nominations process from the ICC's constitution, and instead reverted to the regional rotation system. Morgan (England/West Indies) and Pawar (India/Sri Lanka) will be followed in turn by a president from Australia/New Zealand; Bangladesh/Pakistan; South Africa/Zimbabwe; and an Associate/Affiliate representative.

The board revealed plans to celebrate the centenary of the formation of the ICC in 2009 and also approved the New South Wales Cricket Association as the hosts for the 2009 Women's World Cup.

The board was told that the forensic audit into the affairs of Zimbabwe Cricket undertaken by KPMG had been completed but that the accountants were not ready to present their findings. KPMG had, however, given "an undertaking ... for it to be completed as soon as possible".

A replacement for Malcolm Speed, the ICC chief executive who stands down in June 2008, was discussed and a four-man recruitment committee - Morgan, Pawar, Ray Mali, the current interim president, and Creagh O'Connor, the chairman of Cricket Australia - was charged with finding a successor.

The terms of reference for the setting up of a permanent medical committee were decided upon, with an eye on its creation before the 2008 Champions Trophy.