Why Jay Shah Was Elected ICC Chairman: Top Official Says "Board Doesn't Want..."

Jay Shah will take over as the ICC chairman from December 1, 2024. Jay Shah, at 35, will become the youngest to take over as the chairman of the global governing body. Shah has been serving as the BCCI secretary since October 2019 and chairman of the Asian Cricket Council since January 2021. Jay Shah got the vote of 15 out of 16 members in the ICC Board to be elected the next ICC chairman. 

Cricket West Indies CEO Johnny Grave has now talked in details about the reason behind Jay Shah's election.

"The ICC board doesn't want to waste too much time on internal politics. If you look at Jay's leadership at the BCCI, it has been wonderful. He has hosted the Women's Premier League, successfully oversaw the 50-over World Cup in India and has signed huge broadcast deals with IPL and for BCCI,” Cricket West Indies CEO Johnny Grave told The Indian Express.

Meanwhile, former Australia head coach John Buchanan on Thursday urged the International Cricket Council, which will be led by BCCI secretary Jay Shah soon, to take ‘good decisions' for cricket's long-term future.

Buchanan, who coached Australia to two separate runs of world record 16 consecutive Test wins and ODI World Cup wins in 2003 and 2007, said the ICC needs to be address the concerns over growing number of T20 leagues. “It's an interesting question. With Jay Shah now being installed at the head of the ICC, it really is important that the ICC makes some very, very good long-term decisions for the game,” Buchanan told PTI when asked if India and Australia will continue to produce Test cricketers of the same caliber they have thus far.

"We see a proliferation of T20 leagues, T10 leagues, (The) Hundreds and so on... the reality is, that is the future of the game. The young