Mark Nicholas set to become next MCC chair

Mark Nicholas is in line to become the next Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) chairman for a three-year term, succeeding Bruce Carnegie-Brown.

Last year, it was announced that Bruce wasn't going to seek a second term for the prestigious position. The Club subsequently invited applications for the role. After an intense selection process, Nicholas has emerged as the committee's choice to put to the membership for approval.

However, the cricketer-turned-commentator will only be able to take up the position after his one-year tenure as the President of MCC comes to an end in October. The 66-year-old will be recommended as the new chair at the club's Annual General Meeting (AGM) in May.

Speaking about the development, Nicholas expressed his gratitude and spoke about his ambitions of developing the beautiful sport in the next few years.

“The role of MCC Chair is a huge responsibility and I am honoured to have been named as the Committee’s recommendation to the membership. Amongst many aspects of the Club’s immediate future, is the need to engage more with Members. In addition, we are embarking on many new projects and opportunities as we look to embrace this ever-changing game. I hope to ensure that we can play our part in cricket’s development over the coming years," Nicholas was quoted as saying by Cricket World.

The Westminster-born played 377 first-class matches and 359 List A games and scored 18,262 and 7,334 runs, respectively. Nicholas was also a medium-pace bowler, accounting for 72 wickets in red-ball cricket and 101 in the white-ball format. He played for Hampshire from 1978 to 1995. The right-handed batter captained Hampshire to four trophies between 1986 and 1992, three of them being Lord's finals. He also captained England A during his illustrious career.

After calling time on his playing career, Nicholas ventured into the broadcasting world and gradually became one of the most popular commentators, sharing his commendable knowledge of the sport in his crisp, baritone voice.

Nicholas has been a Member of MCC since 1981 and since the early 1990s has served on the Cricket, Marketing and Main Committees. He has also travelled to places like Bangladesh, East Africa and Bermuda with the Club.

Nicholas is currently Chair of the Southern Brave team in The Hundred, a non-executive director of the media rights agency, River Media Partners, and co-founder/director of Century Cricket.

Chris Rogers, who is the MCC Treasurer, explained why Nicholas is a good fit for the role and how his experience in different facets would help the Club.

“The Nominations committee found that Mark was the outstanding candidate for the role, noting that he has a deep and personal knowledge of the game. In making its recommendation, the MCC Committee feels that his experience, as a player, broadcaster, journalist and administrator, would be of huge benefit to MCC.”