BCCI Secretary Jay Shah has become the youngest ICC President after taking over from Greg Barclay on Thursday, August 27.
Shah won the election unopposed and previously served as BCCI secretary and chairman of the Asian Cricket Council since January 2021.
Barclay is due to begin his term as the new ICC president on 1 December, but has declined to continue for a third term and his mandate will end on 1 November.
There were earlier reports that Shah might win the election unopposed and exactly the same thing happened.
Also Read: Jay Shah confirms India’s future in ICC events after emerging frontrunner for ICC president’s post
“I am honoured to be nominated as the President of the International Cricket Council,” Shah said of his appointment.
Jay Shah makes history with his appointment as ICC president
Jay Shah has been elected unopposed as the next independent president of the International Cricket Council. Shah, who has served as BCCI Secretary since October 2019 and Asian Cricket Council President since January 2021, will take up the role on December 1, 2024. #cricket image.twitter.com/j3IL2yMHMu
– Gaurav Gupta (@toi_gauravG) August 27, 2024
Shah has prioritised his duties even further upon assuming office. Promoting cricket at the Olympic Games remains his primary focus as ICC president.
“I am committed to working closely with the ICC team and our member countries to continue to globalise cricket. We are at a critical juncture where it is increasingly important to balance the coexistence of multiple formats, promote the adoption of advanced technologies and introduce our flagship events to new global markets. Our aim is to make cricket more inclusive and popular than ever before.”
“While we will leverage the valuable lessons learned, we must also embrace new ideas and innovations to elevate the love for cricket across the world.
“The inclusion of our sport in the Olympic Games in Los Angeles 2028 represents a significant turning point for the growth of cricket, and I am confident it will propel the sport forward in unprecedented ways,” he said.
Now that Jay Shah has taken over as the ICC President, the post of BCCI Secretary is vacant. Since 2016, as per the new rules and regulations laid down by the ICC, the post of ICC President is an independent post and therefore a person who is not an elected candidate cannot hold two posts.
Jay Shah’s biggest achievement as BCCI president was that he was able to eliminate the pay disparity between male and female cricketers.
Under his stewardship, he was able to provide the best infrastructure to the Indian players and support staff.
The team also performed incredibly under his reign, playing in the WTC final, the ICC World Cup final at home and finally winning the T20 World Cup in the Caribbean earlier this year in June.
It is noteworthy that Jay Shah had predicted earlier this year in February that Rohit Sharma would lead India to a World Cup victory in Barbados and exactly the same happened.
Meanwhile, Sunil Gavaskar had expressed his support for Jay Shah before his appointment as ICC President.
He had criticised the people in power and called them eternal thieves who had tried to attack Jay Shah and make him feel insecure before he was appointed to the post.
“When Greg Barclay announced his decision not to stand for a third term, to which he was entitled, reports from the Old Powers appeared in the media claiming that Barclay’s decision had been forced upon him by the Shah. Only when the eternal plagiarists were asked what the representatives of their Old Powers were doing, did it suddenly occur to them that if indeed Barclay was forced not to stand for a third term, what were his own representatives at the ICC doing at the meeting?” Gavaskar wrote in his column for the Sportstar.
Also Read: Babar Azam in deep trouble: Mohsin Naqvi orders ‘major overhaul’ of Pakistan Cricket setup
