New Delhi, Jan 10 (NationPress) Jay Shah, the Chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC), is poised to receive an honor from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) during its Special General Meeting (SGM) at its headquarters scheduled for Sunday.
According to sources within the BCCI, Shah, who previously served as the BCCI secretary before assuming the role of ICC Chairman on December 1, will be recognized during the board’s SGM. However, it has been noted that Shah will not participate in the meeting, which will see the formal election of the new BCCI Secretary and Treasurer,” the sources revealed.
The SGM is expected to witness the unopposed election of Devajit Saikia and Prabhtej Singh Bhatia as the new BCCI secretary and treasurer, respectively. Saikia and Bhatia are the only candidates listed in the final list of contenders released by Achal Kumar Jyoti, the BCCI electoral officer, who previously held the position of Chief Election Commissioner of India.
Saikia, who comes from Assam, currently serves as the BCCI joint secretary, a position he has held since October 2022. He has played four first-class matches for Assam as a wicketkeeper-batter and also serves as the state's advocate general. Following Shah's assumption of the ICC Chairman role, Saikia has been acting as the BCCI secretary. His promotion to this crucial secretary role will leave the joint secretary position open, which will be filled through another election process.
Meanwhile, Bhatia will take over the treasurer’s position after his predecessor Ashish Shelar stepped down to join the Maharashtra state government as a cabinet minister. Bhatia has a background with the Chhattisgarh State Cricket Sangh (CSCS), where he served as president, and has also held a position in the BCCI Apex Council.
Furthermore, sources indicated to IANS that a formal decision regarding the venues for WPL 2025 will be announced after the SGM on Sunday. There are ongoing discussions about potential venues, including Vadodara and Lucknow, with additional speculation surrounding Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, and Pune.
Post-SGM, the relevant state units will be informed about the official decision on WPL 2025 venues, which is expected to commence in the first week of February. Lucknow is home to Ekana Stadium, which regularly hosts matches for the Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL, in addition to various domestic and international events.
On the other hand, Vadodara features the new Kotambi Stadium, which recently hosted the India-West Indies women’s ODIs and is currently the venue for knockout matches in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Previously, Mumbai and Navi Mumbai served as hosts for WPL 2023, while Bengaluru and New Delhi were venues for WPL 2024.
