The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) has elected its new president as Ajinkya Naik beat Sanjay Naik to take over the reins of the association with a huge margin of 107 votes, on Tuesday.
The former secretary of the club, Ajinkya Naik registered the victory with 221 votes against Sanjay Naik’s 114. The victory marks the 37-year-old the youngest ever president in the history of the Mumbai Cricket Association, backed by the veteran politician Sharad Pawar.
Pawar was also the former president of the Board of the Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the International Cricket Council (ICC). The election process began on July 4, and the results were declared on July 23.
Ajinkya Naik replaces the late Amol Kale as the new MCA president
The election occurred after the untimely death of the previous president of the Mumbai Cricket Association- Amol Kale in New York, who had travelled with the MCA officials to the Nassau County Cricket Stadium to enjoy the T20 World Cup 2024 game between India and Pakistan before he passed away.
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Ajinkya Naik got the better of Sanjay Naik, who is the current vice-president of the association, as the former joins the likes of Pawar, Vilasrao Deshmukh, Ashish Shelar and Manohar Joshi in the list of MCA presidents.
‘Mr. Pawar has been an inspiration and leader who went on to become BCCI and ICC head.’ Ajinkya Naik expressed after his unexpected win over Sanjay in the voting fight.
‘I thank all the voters who voted in my favour. The victory is a testament to Amol Kale’s exemplary achievement.’ The 37-year-old remarked in a statement. ‘My efforts will be to replicate his commitment and dedication to improving the quality of Mumbai cricket and take his legacy forward.’
In total, around 335 votes were cast on Tuesday afternoon, where the voters included the chief selector of the Indian cricket team and the former Mumbai all-rounder- Ajit Agarkar, Zaheer Khan, Sanjay Manjrekar, Balwinder Singh Sandhu, Paras Mhambrey. The voters also consisted of members of the maiden clubs, gymkhana clubs and the college representatives.
The election officer JS Saharia, while announcing the result narrated the voting process.
‘The votes were counted in 14 rounds. None of the candidates’ representatives objected to any ballot paper and all the votes were deemed valid.’ Saharia noted.
‘At the end of the counting, Sanjay Naik earned 114 votes while Ajinkya Naik got 221 valid votes.’ He observed in a statement. ‘At the end of the conclusion of voting, none of the candidates sought recount, so the AGM (Annual General Meeting) has been reconvened and Ajinkya Naik is declared elected as the MCA president.’
While interacting with the media shortly after the victory, Naik committed this victory towards Maidan cricket.
‘This is the victory of Maidan cricket. It’s a triumph of all the Maidan club secretaries, school and college gymkhana secretaries and the former cricketers. I am only their representative.’ Ajinkya Naik elaborated. ‘I have been serving MCA since 2016 in various capacities and it’s a pyramid-like journey, thanks to maidan clubs and their secretaries.’
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The BJP leader Ashish Shelar, who is the current BCCI treasurer, expressed his support for the newly elected president.
‘This was a friendly contest in which Ajinkya Naik emerged victorious. From hereon we will all work towards betterment of the association. He (Ajinkya) will have my backing.’ Shelar said. ‘Our focus will be on developing Mumbai players and provide them with the best of facilities.’
‘Our candidate Sanjay Naik fought with the right sporting spirit. I will urge him to work with everyone for our family (the cricket community).’ Ashish Shelar concluded.