SEP 28: In a significant moment for Indian cricket, Mithun Manhas has been elected as the 37th President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), taking over from Roger Binny, who recently stepped down.
At 45 years old, Manhas—formerly the captain of Delhi—was chosen at the BCCI’s Annual General Meeting. His nomination emerged as a consensus option, with strong backing from the Jammu & Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA), a support that underscores his broad appeal.
Throughout his long domestic career, Manhas accumulated an impressive record: 157 first-class matches, 130 List A games, and 55 IPL appearances. He scored 9,714 first-class runs at an average of 45.82, with 27 centuries and 49 half-centuries to his name. His finest season came in 2007–08, when he scored 921 runs and played a pivotal role in Delhi clinching the Ranji Trophy.
Manhas also played for three IPL teams—Delhi Daredevils, Pune Warriors India, and Chennai Super Kings—scoring 514 runs in 55 matches. After retiring from professional play, he remained engaged with cricket through roles in coaching and administration, gaining a reputation for promoting grassroots development and maintaining a calm, disciplined approach.
With his election, he becomes just the third former cricketer—after Sourav Ganguly and Roger Binny—to hold the top position in BCCI history. Upon announcement, Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh praised the decision, calling it a proud day especially for Doda, a remote district in Manhas’s native Jammu & Kashmir.
At the same meeting, other key appointments were confirmed: Rajeev Shukla and Devajit Saikia were respectively re-elected Vice President and Secretary; Prabhtej Singh Bhatia was named Joint Secretary and A. Raghuram Bhat elected as Treasurer.
Manhas’s ascension is widely viewed as a signal of renewed focus on nurturing grassroots talent and strengthening the administration of Indian cricket.