Mumbai: Former India captain Sourav Ganguly took charge Wednesday as the BCCI president, easily the most high-profile name to head the world’s richest cricket board that has been mired in administrative turmoil for the past three years.
The 47-year-old Ganguly was officially entrusted with the task of heading Indian cricket for the next nine months at the BCCI’s general body meeting here, ending a controversial 33-month reign of the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA).
Ganguly’s appointment as BCCI’s 39th president was finalised last week. He succeeds CK Khanna, who was the interim head of the board since 2017.
“It’s an honour that I have been asked to take this role. It’s a new start for the BCCI,” said Ganguly, clad in his India blazer which was given to him during the time he served as India captain. “I find myself in a position where I can make a change and it’s a challenge,” he added.
During his tenure, Ganguly will look to coordinate with old guard such as former president N Srinivasan and ex-secretary Niranjan Shah, whose children are now part of the BCCI.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s son Jay was elected secretary while, Mahim Verma of Uttarakhand became the new vice-president. Former BCCI president and current junior Finance Minster Anurag Thakur’s younger brother Arun Dhumal became the treasurer while Kerala’s Jayesh George took the joint secretary’s position.
“It’s a very young group. We will have to do a lot of hard work to understand what’s been going on. There have been no AGMs, no working committees in the last three years, so we have no idea how it has been done. We will take note of everything,” Ganguly said.
Immediately after taking charge Sourav Ganguly called Virat Kohli ‘the most important man in Indian cricket’ and promised the captain all possible support to make his life ‘easier and not difficult’.
“I will speak to him (Kohli) tomorrow. He is the most important man in Indian cricket as captain of India. I look it at that way. So we will have a word with him and as I said we will support him in every possible way, he wants to make this team the best in the world. It has been a great team to be honest with the way they have played in the last three to four years,” said Ganguly.
Ganguly said he will also sit with the team management which also includes head coach Ravi Shastri.
“It will be a proper discussion and everything will be mutually discussed but be rest assured, we are here to make their life easier, not make their life difficult. Everything is on the basis of performance,” the BCCI president pointed out.
“Performance is the most important thing and will decide the future of Indian cricket. Virat is the most important man in the entire context. We will support him, we will listen to him. I have been a captain myself so I understand. Mutual respect will be there, opinions and discussions will be there and we will do what is best for the game,” added the former India skipper.
Ganguly also commented on Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s future in international cricket and vowed to accord the two-time World Cup-winning captain respect during his tenure. Ganguly said he doesn’t know what is in Dhoni’s mind but promised that a player of his stature will be accorded respect.
“You know champions don’t finish quickly. I don’t know what’s in his mind and what he thinks about his career. So we will deal with that you know,” Ganguly told reporters.
“He is one of the greats of the game and India is proud to have MS Dhoni over a period of time. If you even sit down and take a note of what he has done, you say, ‘Wow, MS Dhoni’,” added Ganguly.
Legends of the game have often had unceremonious exit and Ganguly himself knows it more than anyone else how it feels to fight speculations and criticism. “Till I am around, everybody will be respected and that doesn’t change,” Ganguly said.
Congratulatory messages poured in for Ganguly after the formalities were completed at the board headquarters here.
“I’m confident that as BCCI President he will take Inddian cricket to greater heights. I am hopeful that Jay Shah and Sourav Ganguly and their team will deliver. This is start of a new era for Indian cricket,” said Delhi and Districts Cricket Association chief Rajat Sharma.
Former IPL Chairman Rajiv Shukla echoed the sentiment. “Sourav will be an asset because he has been the most successful captain, and he has been most successful CAB president as well,” Shukla said.
Ganguly, who took over as India captain during one of its darkest hours following the 2000 match-fixing scandal, will need to demit office by the end of July next year as per the provisions of new constitution, which makes ‘Cooling Off’ period mandatory after six years in office.
Ganguly has set a few goals and the primary ones are restructuring of first class cricket as well as getting the administration back in shape along with getting India’s position of reverence back in the corridors of International Cricket Council (ICC).
Agencies
