'India means victory': ICC chief Jay Shah's big praise for Men in Blue after CNBC-TV18 award

International Cricket Council chairman Jay Shah heaped praise on Indian cricket teams across genders and age categories for their remarkable consistency at major tournaments in recent years, going so far as to suggest that India have taken a leaf out of Australia's book and have become synonymous with victory and consistency.

Shah made the comment while being felicitated at the CNBC TV18 India Business Leader Awards in Mumbai on Saturday. The ICC chief received the award for 'Outstanding Contribution to Sports'. Also honoured at the event were India T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav and head coach Gautam Gambhir, who received the 'Sports Leader of the Year' and 'Excellence in Sports' awards respectively.

More from Firstcricket

Shah reflects on India's remarkable growth since 2019

Speaking to those present at the event including Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, Shah not only praised the Indian team, which had lifted the T20 World Cup for the second consecutive time on Sunday while reflecting on the growth of Indian cricket from the time he joined the Board of Control for Cricket in India in 2019.

"I would like to dedicate this award to all the athletes, especially woman athletes who are working hard on the field. To Surya, Gauti bhai and all the Team India players, I offer you my heartiest congratulations. And along with India, I also want to congratulate South Africa and England, the teams that had not lost a single match before the knockouts. And finally finalists New Zealand cricket team, the way they performed, the way they worked hard on the field, congratulations to them as well," Shah said during the event.

"From the time I had joined BCCI in 2019 till 2026, India has won two U-19 Men’s World Cups, two U-19 Women’s World Cups, two runner-up finishes in WTC finals, one runner-up finish at the ODI World Cup, two consecutive T20 World Cup triumphs and the 2025 Champions Trophy. It’s a massive achievement and congratulations to all of you for that.

"I have been following cricket since 1998 and have been running the game as an administrator since 2009. There used to be a time when ‘Australia matlab jeet’ (Australia means victory) was a widely-held belief. Now it’s ‘India matlab jeet’ (India means victory)," he added.

'A single team does not make an organisation'

Shah also reflected on the challenges of organising the 2026 T20 World Cup, especially in the build-up with Bangladesh getting replaced by Scotland in the last-minute after refusing to travel to India and Pakistan later threatening to boycott their match against India.

"And from the perspective of the International Cricket Council, this ICC World Cup was important because a lot of people were discussing before the tournament whether a particular team will be playing or not and how the tournament will be taking place. But as the ICC Chairman, I want to tell you all that there is nothing greater than an organisation, and a single team does not make an organisation. It when all the teams come together that makes an organisation," the 37-year-old continued.

The ICC chief also used the occasion as an opportunity to pat the Associate nations and some of the lower-ranked Full Members on their back for their admirable fight against higher-ranked teams including title favourites.

"USA gave India a hard time in the first match. Netherlands gave Pakistan a hard time. Zimbabwe ended up defeating Australia. And Nepal had given England a hard time. I would thus like to congratulate all the Associate teams for putting up such a terrific fight against Full Board members," he added.