Rohan Desai set to be new BCCI joint secretary

DUBAI: In an unexpected development, Goa Cricket Association secretary Rohan Desai is set to become the new joint secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), TOI has learnt.
Desai is expected to file his nomination by 4pm on Saturday-the window to file nominations for the post of joint secretary is on Friday and Saturday, between 11 and 4pm.
The BCCI had convened a Special General Meeting (SGM) to elect the new joint secretary in Mumbai on March 1, but Desai, who is set to be the sole candidate to file his nomination for the post, is now set to take over the post. The post of the BCCI's joint secretary became vacant after Devajit Saika was elevated as the secretary following Jay Shah's appointment as the ICC Chair on Jan 12 in Mumbai.
"Yes, Desai's name has been finalised for the joint secretary's post," a reliable source tracking developments told TOI.
In November last year, Desai was appointed as the manager of the Indian team for the four-match T20I series in South Africa. As per the BCCI constitution, the position needs to be filled within 45 days.
On February 6, the BCCI had sent out a notice for an SGM to the state associations with a single-item agenda-the election of the BCCI joint secretary at 12 noon on March 1, at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai.
The development is a bit surprising since a candidate from the west zone was tipped to get the position. Desai is believed to be close to Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant.
Clearly, it seems that the BCCI is looking to give a chance to the office-bearers of some of the smaller state associations for its top posts-Saikia is from Assam, while Chhattisgarh's Prabhtej Singh Bhatia is the BCCI treasurer.
Currently, India's 1983 World Cup hero Roger Binny (Karnataka) is the BCCI president, while Rajeev Shukla (Uttar Pradesh) is the vice-president.