BCCI secretary Jay Shah has been elected unopposed as the Independent Chair of the ICC.
Reports had been doing the rounds for some time that Jay Shah is set to take over from Greg Barclay as the new ICC chair. The confirmation came on Tuesday (August 27) as the ICC announced Shah as Barclay's successor.
Last week, Barclay, the current ICC chief, had announced that he would step down from the role at the end of his tenure in November. Shah, who has been elected unopposed for the role, will assume his position on December 1, 2024.
Interestingly, the 35-year-old Shah was the only nominee for the position.
“I am humbled by the nomination as the Chair of the International Cricket Council,” Shah said. “I am committed to working closely with the ICC team and our member nations to further globalize cricket.
"We stand 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 marquee events to new global markets. Our goal is to make cricket more inclusive and popular than ever before.
“While we will build on the valuable lessons learned, we must also embrace fresh thinking and innovation to elevate the love for cricket worldwide. 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.”
Shah is also the president of the Asian Cricket Council. He entered cricket administration through the Gujarat Cricket Association, become GCA's joint secretary in 2013. Two years later, he went on to become a member of the finance and marketing committee of the BCCI.
In 2019, he was elected as the secretary of the BCCI, and was re-elected in 2022.
Shah is the son of Amit Shah, who is currently the minster of home affairs in the Indian government.
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