Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary, Jay Shah, has been elected as the next chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC). Shah, who will assume office on the first of December, 2024, was the only candidate for the position after the current chairman Greg Barclay, who had held the office for two terms since 2020, revealed that he will not seek another term. Since there were no other nominees for the position, Jay Shah was announced as the chair unopposed, without an election.
“I am humbled by the nomination as the Chair of the International Cricket Council. I am committed to working closely with the ICC team and our member nations to further globalise cricket,” Shah revealed in an ICC statement after he was nominated the head of the global body.
“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.”
At 34 years of age, Shah will be the youngest chairman to hold the office. He will also be the fifth Indian to be elected as the Chief of ICC. The newly elected chair will not be new to the administration role. Currently, he heads the ICC’s influential Finance & Commercial Affairs (F&CA) committee. He is also the head of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) as of now, a role he will have to forsake before his first day in the office as ICC’s head.
In a BCCI statement earlier today, Shah shed light on his plans after he will assume the role. In addition to working on making cricket a hit at the Los Angeles Olympics 2028, Shah hopes to transform the game by devising new plans for talent search, prioritizing the purest format of the game, Test cricket, and allocating more resources for women’s cricket.
“I would also like to work towards setting up a separate program for talent search during my tenure, and I look forward to your support in this program. While the T20 is a naturally exciting format, it is equally important that Test cricket remains a priority for everyone as it forms the bedrock of our game. We must see to it that cricketers are driven to longer format and our efforts will be channelised towards this goal.” Shah was quoted as saying.
“We must champion the ICC’s mission further by allocating more resources and attention to Women’s Cricket and Differently-abled Cricket. Together, we can empower these essential facets of the sport, making them not just visible but vibrant and thriving.”
