Jay Shah elected unopposed, becomes youngest ever ICC chairman

PTI, Aug 27, 2024, 8:23 PM IST

Jay Shah

Dubai: BCCI secretary Jay Shah was elected unopposed as the next ICC chairman here on Tuesday, making him the youngest ever to reach the pinnacle of global cricket administration.

The 35-year-old Shah, who has been the BCCI secretary since 2019, will take over from 62-year-old incumbent Greg Barclay on December 1 after the New Zealander decided against running for a third consecutive term of two years.

Shah, who is the son of union home minister Amit Shah, will relinquish his position in India at the BCCI’s Annual General Meeting likely to be held towards the end of next month or in October.

Shah became the fifth Indian after late Jagmohan Dalmiya, Sharad Pawar, N Srinivasan and Shashank Manohar to be elected for the high-profile job.

The Ahmedabad-based administrator, who was the sole nominee for the chairmanship, emphasised his commitment to expanding the global reach and popularity of cricket, especially with its upcoming inclusion in the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.

“I am humbled by the nomination as the Chair of the International Cricket Council,” Shah stated in an ICC release.

He also acknowledged that international cricket stands at a critical juncture and it would be important to balance the coexistence of multiple formats, promote the adoption of advanced technologies, and introduce marquee events to new global markets.

“I am committed to working closely with the ICC team and our member nations to further globalise cricket. Our goal is to make cricket more inclusive and popular than ever before,” he was quoted as saying in the release.

Being a powerful decision-maker in the richest cricket board of the world, which contributes more than 75 per cent of the revenue for the global body, Shah’s election was never in doubt once he threw his hat in the ring.

It is understood that one among the powerful SENA cricket boards (South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia) was Shah’s proposer and another one of these countries seconded the nomination. And he remained the lone contender on the last day of nominations.

As per the ICC constitution, there are 17 votes — 12 full Test playing nations, chairman, deputy chairman, two associate member nominees and one independent female director.

That he is a likely choice was evident when he was appointed the head of ICC’s most powerful sub-committee — the Finance and Commercial Affairs (F&CA) in 2022.

The timing couldn’t have been better for Shah, who would have had to go on a mandatory cooling off period in 2025 for a period of three years till 2028.

The BCCI constitution allows office-bearers to stay in office for a cumulative period of 18 years — nine in national board and nine in state units.

But at a stretch, a person can remain office-bearer for a period of only six years after which a three-years cooling off period is necessary.

Shah, if all goes well, can have two terms in the ICC and come back to complete his remaining four years in BCCI in 2028 albeit as president of the board.

Challenges in ICC ============ The immediate task facing Shah will be the conduct of the Champions Trophy in Pakistan.

It must be noted that Shah, as chairman of Asian Cricket Council (ACC), was a big supporter of the Hybrid Model where Pakistan and Sri Lanka co-hosted the Asia Cup ODI event in 2023.

How ICC chairman Shah handles the matter remains to be seen considering that the Indian government might not allow the team to travel to Pakistan.

It is believed that the ‘Hybrid Model’ could again be the solution with Pakistan playing its matches at home and against India in Dubai.

The long term challenge would be to protect the future of Test cricket by having dedicated funds for the formats, keep ODIs sustainable and protect countries from losing core talent to freelancing in T20 leagues across the world.

Maintaining a calendar that is effective and allows players some breathing space along with means to earn well would also be high on his agenda.

Another important challenge is promotion of cricket in Olympics as it would make its debut at Los Angeles in 2028.

“While we will build on the valuable lessons learned, we must also embrace fresh thinking and innovation to elevate the love for cricket worldwide,” Shah stated.

“The inclusion of our sport in the Olympics at LA 2028 represents a significant inflection point for the growth of cricket, and I am confident that it will drive the sport forward in unprecedented ways,” he added.