Former Indian Cricket Board secretary Amitabh Chaudhary passes away in Ranchi

IPS officer Amitabh Chaudhary, who was also the chairman of the Jharkhand Public Service Commission, passed away on Tuesday. He was admitted to Santevita Hospital in the capital Ranchi. Amitabh Chaudhary, who went from being an engineering student to IPS and then to Indian Cricket Board Secretary, does not need any introduction. He was born on 6 July 1960 and breathed his last on 16th August 2022.

The news of his demise was confirmed by the Jharkhand State Cricket Association officials. Chaudhary was in charge of the JSCA for over 10 years and was also the acting secretary of the Indian Cricket Board in the past.

The 58-year-old reportedly suffered a heart attack which eventually led to his death. Speaking on the news of Chaudhary's demise, his colleague Anirudh Chaudhary said: “Amitabh’s contribution to the game of cricket in Jharkhand was immense. He will be missed by JSCA and it will be difficult to fill the void left by him in Jharkhand. I offer my condolences to his family, friends and well-wishers,” he was quoted as saying by the Indian Express.

Chaudhary was a former IPS officer but cricket remained his first love. He also served as the manager of the Indian team during the 2005-06 season for the tour of Zimbabwe. It was the same series that had marked the beginning of the infamous Greg Chappell-Sourav Ganguly fallout.

Chaudhary returned as the secretary of the Indian Cricket Board during the Committee of Administrators (CoA) rule. Having seen the Chappell-Ganguly saga first hand, Chaudhary, once again, dealt with another player-coach fallout between the Indian captain Virat Kohli and Head Coach Anil Kumble.

Kumble eventually resigned as the head coach of the Indian team after the humiliating loss against Pakistan in the Champions Trophy Final in 2017. He reportedly had issues with the then-Team India skipper Kohli.

The veteran administrator had also played a pivotal role in making Ranchi the headquarters of Jharkhand cricket. The base earlier was in Jamshedpur. He played a massive role in building a world-class stadium at Ranchi. As a reward for his work, one end of the stadium was also named after him.