Jay Shah becomes youngest-ever ICC Chairman, fifth Indian in role

Jay Shah, the current honorary secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), has been elected unopposed as the Chairman of the ICC, and will assume his position on 1 December. At 35, Shah is the youngest chairman in the history of ICC.

Shah joins an illustrious list of Indian administrators who have helmed the cricket board: Jagmohan Dalmiya, Sharad Pawar, N Srinivasan and Shashank Manohar.

Read | Jay Shah’s meteoric rise and what his elevation could mean

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

Shah will relinquish his position in India at the BCCI’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) likely to be held towards the end of next month or in October.

Shah, who was the sole nominee for the position, emphasised his commitment to expanding the global reach and popularity of cricket, especially with the sport included at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

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

“I am committed to working closely with the ICC team and our member nations to further globalise 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.”

Elected unopposed

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.

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.

Challenges at ICC

The immediate task facing Shah will be the conduct of the 2025 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 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.

(with inputs from PTI)