Jay Shah takes over as the president of Asian Cricket Council

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah has taken over as the president of the Asian Cricket Council.

New role for Jay Shah.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah has taken over as the president of the Asian Cricket Council. He replaces Nazmul Hasan Papon. The position is rotated among full members of the Asian boards every two years.

At 32, Shah is the youngest administrator to be appointed as the ACC president.

“I accept this honour and I thank my esteemed colleagues at the BCCI for nominating me and considering me worthy of this prestigious position. Formed with a view to organize, develop and promote the sport in the region, the ACC has steadily grown in stature. The ACC continues to foster healthy rivalry among some of the biggest cricket playing nations while it also takes the sport deeper into the smaller pockets. We must remain committed to this cause and ensure there is an all-round development in the region,” Shah said.

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“The pandemic has posed enormous challenges but history has shown that innovation often arises in periods of adversity and we must adapt and innovate to stay ahead. While I have noticed that most Boards have again started their cricketing operations with their senior team, the challenge still remains with women’s cricket and age-group cricket. The ACC has done pioneering work in both women’s cricket and age-group with the multiple tournaments it conducts across the year and we must build on this,” Mr Shah said.

Congratulating Shah on his new role, the BCCI chief Sourav Ganguly said: “We have worked closely, and I am well aware of his plans and vision to develop the game of cricket. I have personally experienced the zeal with which he worked to bring a turnaround in Chandigarh, Uttarakhand and North-eastern states in setting up the cricketing infrastructure and setting up the ecosystem. It is definitely a challenging phase, but I am confident he will successfully navigate the challenges posed by the virus. The BCCI will extend every help and will play a big role in rebuilding and restructuring of the cricketing activities in Asia.”

The ACC is Asia's regional administrative body and it currently consists of 24 member associations. For Shah, one of the biggest challenges will be to conduct the Asia Cup - which is scheduled to be held this year.