Expected stubbornness but Jay Shah is honest and proper, says Sourav Ganguly

Reflecting on his eventful tenure as BCCI president, Sourav Ganguly has revealed that he expected a “certain kind of toughness and stubbornness” from the then Board secretary and current ICC chairman Jay Shah but was left impressed with his “honesty” and resolve to do things “properly”.

Ganguly and Shah were colleagues at the world’s richest cricket board from October 2019 to September 2022, navigating a tumultuous phase caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which brought sporting activity to a grinding halt for few months.

“He (Jay) had his own way of doing things but the best thing about him was he wanted to do things properly for Indian cricket,” Ganguly told PTI in an exclusive interview at his residence in Kolkata.

“See, he had the power, the support, so you expected certain kind of toughness, stubbornness from him but he would do things for Indian cricket,” the iconic former captain explained, referring to Shah’s status of being the son of Home Minister Amit Shah.

It was the first time that both Ganguly and Shah held BCCI positions. Before that, Ganguly had headed the Cricket Association of Bengal, while Shah was an office-bearer in the Gujarat Cricket Association.

While Ganguly was replaced by another former Test player Roger Binny in 2022, Shah continued as BCCI secretary till November 2024 before taking over as the youngest ever ICC chairman at 36 years of age.

Asked about how the power dynamics and relationship was between the scion of a political family and a celebrated cricket star, Ganguly said they shared a cordial equation which has continued to this date.

“Relationship was very good. It’s still very good. When he came in September 2019…he was a young boy, straight from Gujarat CA, very cooperative, approachable,” he recalled.

“Obviously, he had opinions and rightfully so, he wanted to do things and still does, he is the ICC chairman and it is a bigger post.” Ganguly believes that with time, Shah became better at his job.

“He is very supportive of players. He got better as he learnt. The good thing about him was he wanted to do good for the game,” the soon-to-be-53 superstar said.

The Kolkata-based legend said Shah was acutely aware of his status and always wanted to carry out his work in a principled manner.

“He is very honest, he always had the thought (about) who he was at the back of his mind, what baggage he carried. So, he wanted to do things rightfully and properly all the time.

“All of us made mistakes, I did, he did. It was never intentional but the game never stopped,” Ganguly added.

The former captain said they do bump into each other occasionally.

“Obviously, he has progressed, he is the ICC Chairman now. You see him at times because you live in different cities. I am not involved in administration, I wish him the best.

“I saw him in England this time for a little bit. I meet him in ICC meetings because I am the chair of the (ICC cricket) committee and he wants the game to grow and go forward.”