Star Sports DNA at play as ICC CEO Sanjog Gupta passes first stress test

New Delhi: The first major tournament after Sanjog Gupta’s elevation to the top job at the ICC delivered a crisis worthy of a stress test.

Gupta assumed office on July 7, 2025, becoming the seventh CEO of the ICC.

Pakistan pressed the world body to act against India and remove match referee Andy Pycroft after the “no-handshake” flashpoint at the India-Pakistan game. There were boycott threats, a delayed toss at Pakistan’s next fixture, and a string of procedural scuffles around pre-match protocols. 

Through it all, the ICC CEO kept the game on schedule, backed his officials, and stayed firmly within the rulebook. 

For a former TV executive who ran Star Sports and later JioStar’s sports business, it was a debut that showcased exactly why broadcasters value operational steel in the big chair.

Prior to taking up the ICC assignment, Gupta served as CEO – Sports & Live Experiences at JioStar.

The handshake row

India’s captain Suryakumar Yadav declined the customary handshake with Pakistan’s Salman Ali Agha at the earlier clash, an on-field gesture replaced by a public expression of solidarity for terror-attack victims. 

Pakistan argued that match referee Andy Pycroft had also interfered with routine formalities around the toss and team-sheet exchange, and demanded his removal from the Asia Cup.

When the ICC declined on the morning of Pakistan’s next game in Dubai, the team initially refused to leave its hotel because Pycroft was retained. 

Teams are required to report to the venue two hours before the start; the protest pushed the schedule back by roughly an hour. 

The ICC convened a call with PCB chairman and ACC head Mohsin Naqvi. Gupta remained firm with his messaging that Pycroft will stay. 

The council had reviewed the facts and found the referee had acted in line with tournament direction and the spirit of keeping the toss free of fresh political theatre.

As a cooling measure, the ICC facilitated a brief, closed-door interaction before the match between Pycroft and the Pakistan captain and manager. 

Pycroft expressed regret for any “miscommunication,” without conceding wrongdoing. That was the bridge Pakistan needed to take the field. The cricket finally started.

From rules to red lines

If the morning was tense, what followed pushed into hard rules. Tournament sources say Pakistan insisted its media manager be present in the pre-toss interaction inside the Players and Match Officials Area (PMOA) and sought to film the exchange, both prohibited under ICC regulations. 

Security initially refused, citing the no-devices rule. Pakistan threatened to withdraw. To avoid another delay, the ICC allowed the recording without audio, but noted the breach.

Soon after, the PCB’s public communication described Pycroft as having “apologised,” wording the ICC took exception to because, in its view, the referee had apologised only for a misunderstanding, not for any directive. 

Separately, the ICC reminded Pakistan that PMOA sanctity is non-negotiable and followed up with an e-mail to the PCB flagging “misconduct” and “multiple violations” related to PMOA access and filming.

People familiar with the matter say the ICC is weighing action for repeat infractions tied to PMOA discipline and match-day conduct. 

The Gupta method

What stood out in the 48-hour cycle was the balance of firmness and de-escalation.

The ICC’s internal review concluded Pycroft had followed directions to preserve the sanctity of the toss and to avoid a photo-op that could overshadow the game. That finding became the anchor for every subsequent decision.

The pre-match conversation with Pycroft, captain, and manager, without admitting fault, gave Pakistan a pathway back to the field while the ICC held ground on the substantive question of the referee’s role.

The moment the dispute shifted from symbolism to PMOA rules (access, filming, devices), the ICC drew a red line. The e-mail to the PCB, the formal noting of violations, and the possibility of sanctions restored procedural discipline around the match.

Perhaps the most “broadcast” part of the response was the insistence on getting the game on, even if an hour late, and then tightening the screws on process.

Credit to broadcast past

Gupta arrives at the ICC from the control room of Indian sport. 

Over more than a decade at Star, he commissioned formats, engineered multi-language feeds and digital simulcasts, and lived through enough rain delays, venue hold-ups, and protest flashpoints to know the difference between noise and non-negotiables.

Broadcasters obsess over controlled environments, the set, the tunnel, the presentation area. The PMOA is cricket’s own sterile zone. Gupta’s insistence that meetings in that space remain device-free and unfilmed tracks perfectly with broadcast-grade discipline.

Gupta understands well that in a row like this, every hour of delay ripples through make-goods, brand rotations, and carriage deals. 

A chief who speaks the grammar of GRPs and affiliate clearances can calm jittery partners quickly. Several broadcast executives privately praised the ICC’s “process-first” stance because it preserved the tournament’s commercial spine.

Finally, Gupta passed the test in narrative management as well. Allowing a referee-captain conversation that acknowledged miscommunication but did not indict the official gave each side a line to move ahead. 

Calm hands on the wheel

Among rights-holders and advertisers, the verdict on Gupta’s first big test is positive. The ICC did not trade away principles to buy short-term peace. It protected a match official, protected the toss, protected the PMOA, and still found a way to get the game on. 

For a sport that has sometimes allowed boardroom theatrics to derail cricket, the Asia Cup’s handling felt like a statement of intent.

A senior media buyer summed it up well: “He didn’t blink on rules, and he didn’t grandstand either. That’s what sponsors want, predictability and professionalism.”