Jay Shah, the honorary secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, has now become the youngest Chair of the International Cricket Council (ICC). Shah has been elected unopposed.
Shah, 35, is the son of Indian Home Minister Amit Shah. He will step down from his honorary role in BCCI and will assume the charge of the ICC on December 1st, 2024. He will be replacing New Zealand’s Greg Barclay.
Barclay opted against continuing his role amid growing support for Jay Shah on the board.
“ICC chair Greg Barclay confirmed to the board that he will not stand for a third term and will step down from the post when his current tenure finishes at the end of November. Barclay was appointed as the independent ICC chair in November 2020, before being re-elected in 2022,” an ICC spokesperson told The Age.
“Current directors are now required to put forward nominations for the next chair by 27 August 2024 and if there is more than one candidate, an election will be held with the term of the new chair commencing on 1 December 2024.”
Read more: Jay Shah expected to become the new ICC Chairman
Shah claims he has the support from the key ICC nations, England and Australia. He is currently BCCI Secretary. His current position will expire next year. He will become the youngest ICC Chairman at the age of 35, if he assumes the charge.
The change of ICC Chairman will come at a time when Pakistan is planning to host the ICC Champion Trophy 2025 on its soil. So far, India has not given a firm response if the team will travel to Pakistan for the event or not.
He entered cricket in 2009 and by 2019 he was appointed as the Secretary of BCCI. Shah was appointed President of the Asian Cricket Council, in a prelude to his rise to the top of the global game. He was the youngest President of the ACC too. Later in 2022, Shah became Chairman of the Finance & Commercial Affairs (F&C) Committee at the ICC.