India not to blame: Howard

“We have to be careful of making India some kind of target of disdain in world cricket,” Howard said when asked if he considered India the primary reason for losing out on the crucial Afro-Asian support for his bid.

“(But) I think it is very important we understand there’s got to be a fair sharing of responsibilities and no one part of the world, no one country, should dominate.

“People in the past criticised the fact it was dominated by England and Australia and now we don’t want to replace one perceived domination with another,” he told ‘Channel Nine’.

“That in a way is why the ICC put in place this rotation system and that’s one of the issues CA have got to take into account when it responds to what has happened.”

Howard said he still wants the job but it is up to Cricket Australia and New Zealand Cricket to consider whether he should be re-nominated.

“I went into this because I love cricket very much and I had the time to devote to it and the energy and the commitment, but what happens from now on CA and New Zealand Cricket have been asked to re-nominate and they obviously separately and together will meet and talk about the situation,” he added.

Howard once again expressed his disappointment at being rejected for the job and hoped CA would work out a conciliatory formula.

Howard said India’s financial might should not be viewed negatively. “There is one part of the world where a sport at the present time remains transcendent over soccer and that is the Indian sub-continent,” he said.

“The fanaticism for cricket among the 1.5 billion people in the entire region... is unbelievable and we’ve got to see that in a positive light,” he added.