Roger Binny, India’s 1983 World Cup hero, has been elected as the 36th president of the BCCI, NDTV reported. He will be taking over from incumbent Sourav Ganguly. 

The 67-year-old’s selection as the 36th president of the BCCI comes after a week of back-channel discussions. On the other hand, Jay Shah, son of the Union Home Minister Amit Shah, will continue on as the Secretary of the BCCI. The younger Shah is also set to replace Ganguly as India’s representative on the ICC Board. 

Who is Roger Binny?

Roger Binny is an Indian former cricketer who was part of the 1983 squad that won the Cricket World Cup that year. He is the first Anglo-Indian of Scottish origin to play for the Indian team. His son, Stuart Binny followed in his father’s footsteps and played cricket for Karnataka as well as the Indian national cricket team. 

The start of Binny’s international career was, ironically, at home in Bangalore at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. It was the first Test of the 1979 home series against Pakistan. In his debut match, Binny scored 46 runs. At the height of his career, he was an all-rounder who was a useful swing bowler and a great fielder. 

While not a great Test player, his decent bowling skills meant that he could hold down an innings until the better bowlers could take over. He, along with wicket-keeper Syed Kirmani would ensure that India managed to hold on in Test matches. 

Binny currents serves as the Office Bearer of the Karnataka State Cricket Association and served as the in-house cricket expert of news channel NewsX during the 2011 International Cricket World Cup. In 2012, he was appointed to the five member selection panel of the BCCI.