New Delhi: The International Cricket Council (ICC) chairman Jay Shah paid tribute to former Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Inderjit Singh Bindra, popularly known as I.S. Bindra, who passed away at his residence on Sunday at the age of 84.
Bindra served as BCCI president from 1993 to 1996. He was a key figure in Indian cricket administration and led the Punjab Cricket Association for many years. His association with the PCA spanned over three decades, from 1978 to 2014.
While serving in administrative roles, Bindra made significant contributions to cricket management and infrastructure in the region and beyond, ultimately being honoured in 2015 with the renaming of the PCA Stadium in Mohali to the I.S. Bindra Stadium in recognition of his contributions to cricket.
In addition to his role as an administrator, Bindra became known for his outspoken views on governance in Indian cricket and particularly was critical of the way N. Srinivasan and the BCCI managed the IPL 2013 corruption scandal and questioned the lack of transparency and accountability in that process.
In his role as a senior bureaucrat, Bindra contributed to the establishment of India’s place in world cricket during the 1990s, along with Jagmohan Dalmiya, by recognising the commercial opportunities for television rights that ultimately resulted in the entry of private broadcasters, which transformed the financial structure of the game and increased India’s global influence.
Internationally, Bindra played a major role in obtaining the rights for the ICC to hold major events in India; later, he was one of the primary advisers to the President of the ICC and demonstrated his significance within cricket administration.
(IANS)
