The BCCI secretary is poised to be named the new ICC chairman, as the current chairman, Greg Barclay, has announced his decision to step down when his term ends in November.
Jay Shah
Jay Shah, the secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), is set to succeed Greg Barclay as the new chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC), according to sources cited by NDTV. Barclay, during a video conference with ICC directors, including Cricket Australia’s chair Mike Baird, announced that he will not seek a third term. His decision follows Jay Shah’s expressed interest in the role, with plans to assume the position in November. Shah has secured the support of the cricket boards of England and Australia, giving him the necessary backing to become the next ICC chief.
Previously, only four Indians have held the top position at ICC: Jagmohan Dalmiya (1997 to 2000), Sharad Pawar (2010 to 2012) as presidents, and N. Srinivasan (2014 to 2015), and Shashank Manohar (2015 to 2020) as chairmen. Shah, the son of India’s home minister Amit Shah, will be the fifth Indian to lead the ICC and the third in the capacity of chairman.
An ICC spokesperson told The Age, “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 and re-elected in 2022.”
Current ICC directors must submit their nominations for the new chair by August 27, 2024. If multiple candidates are nominated, an election will be held, with the new chair’s term beginning on December 1, 2024. Under ICC rules, the election for chairman requires 16 votes, and a simple majority of nine votes (51%) is now sufficient for a candidate to win, unlike the previous requirement of a two-thirds majority.
Shah, who has garnered significant goodwill among the 16 voting members, has one year remaining as BCCI secretary before he must take a mandatory three-year cooling-off period starting October 2025, as per the BCCI constitution approved by the Supreme Court. The constitution allows an office bearer to serve for six years before requiring a cooling-off period, with a total potential tenure of 18 years—nine at the state association level and nine at BCCI. If Shah moves to the ICC with a year left in his BCCI secretaryship, he would still have four years remaining in his BCCI term.
At 35, Shah will become the youngest chairman in ICC history.
