Ajinkya Naik elected unopposed as Mumbai Cricket Association president 2025
Ajinkya Naik was re-elected as Mumbai Cricket Association President after a dominant victory backed by key political and cricketing leaders.
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After the results of the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) Elections were declared, Ajinkya Naik was re-elected as the President following a clear majority in his favor. Although Naik had earlier been elected unanimously during the council meeting, opposition from Ashish Shelar’s panel forced formal voting, where Naik’s faction secured 12 votes, while Shelar’s side received only four.
Jitendra Awhad, who contested for the Vice-President's post, defeated Naveen Shetty by a margin of 48 votes to become Naik’s deputy for the new term. Meanwhile, Unmesh Khanvilkar was elected as the new secretary after beating Shah Alam Sheikh with a huge 98-vote lead. An overjoyed Naik took to X and termed the result a victory for the Maidan clubs, secretaries, and every cricketer in Mumbai.
Bharat Kini, who defeated Kishore Jain, will preside over the meetings of the Mumbai T20 competition going forward. The MCA has also added nine new members to its Apex Council following voting by 362 association members. Naik’s panel recorded a landslide victory, winning 12 out of 16 key positions, further strengthening their hold on the association.
Strong Political Backing and Continued Leadership
Major political and cricketing figures at the time, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Sharad Pawar, the former head of the MCA, BCCI, and ICC, had supported Ajinkya Naik's success. This was under the powerful alliance in the Maharashtra cricket administration, the Pawar-Shelar group. Along with Naik, panel members such as Unmesh Khanvilkar (Secretary), Jitendra Awhad (Vice-President), Nilesh Bhosle (Joint Secretary), and Arman Mallick (Treasurer) secured important posts.
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Naik, the youngest MCA President when first elected in 2024, has focused on improving Mumbai’s grassroots maidan cricket and strengthening cricket infrastructure. Under his leadership, projects like the Sharad Pawar Cricket Museum and upgrades to Wankhede Stadium have been launched. With the new Apex Council members, Sandeep Vichare, Suraj Samat, Vighnesh Kadam, Milind Narvekar, Bhushan Patil, Nadim Memon, Vikas Repale, Pramod Yadav, and Neil Savant, the MCA looks set for another term of strong administration.
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