Former India fast bowler Venkatesh Prasad has been elected as the new president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA). He won the elections held on Sunday, December 7. Prasad defeated his rival KN Shanth Kumar by a clear margin. Prasad secured 749 votes. Shanth Kumar received 558 votes.
Prasad was happy with the result. He said the win was not just personal. He believes it will help in bringing top-level cricket back to Bengaluru’s M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. The famous stadium has not hosted major matches since a tragic stampede incident on June 4. The incident happened during Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s IPL victory parade.
After his win, Prasad spoke about his goals. He said, “First and foremost, this is a victory for the sport of cricket. Secondly, this is a victory for all the members who wanted a change, all the people who wanted international cricket to come back to the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium,” as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
Venkatesh Prasad Promises Big Changes for Karnataka Cricket
Prasad received strong support ahead of the elections. Former India stars Anil Kumble and Javagal Srinath backed him openly. He thanked both legends and all other supporters for trusting him.
In his manifesto, the 56-year-old promised to bring back the lost glory of Karnataka cricket. One of his main aims is to revive IPL and international matches at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.
After the result, Prasad said, “We are sitting here only because of all these people who have supported us, who have believed in us, and backed us through and through. They believed in our purpose, in our cause, they had faith in us and so did the members. We are going to implement our manifesto, whatever we have said. So I thank you all for giving us an opportunity. And I am sure we are going to make sure that we do everything for the game,” as per Deccan Herald.
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Chinnaswamy Stadium recently lost several major events. It was removed as a venue for the 2025 Women’s World Cup. It was also ignored for the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup. RCB are also exploring the option of playing IPL 2026 matches in Pune.
Prasad now faces the big task of restoring cricket to its iconic home.
