The International Cricket Council has expanded the remit of Prabhakaran Thanraj, its Vice President – Marketing and Business Development, who will now also lead the organisation’s Communications function.
The change was announced in an email from the ICC‘s Corporate Communications Team, which described it as part of “a wider organisational restructuring designed to support the continued growth of cricket worldwide.” Thanraj will take on Communications alongside his existing responsibilities, which span marketing, licensing and merchandising, ticketing, hospitality and experiences.
The ICC said Thanraj “brings extensive experience across the marketing, commercial and communications landscape, as well as a strong understanding of the role media plays in promoting and growing the game.”
Thanraj confirmed the move on LinkedIn, writing that he was “grateful for the trust placed in me and excited about the opportunity to bring these functions even closer together as we continue to grow the game globally, while also driving new IP and commercial initiatives for the ICC.”
He framed the combined portfolio as a reflection of how the business of the sport is changing. “Marketing, communications, commercial strategy and the fan experience are increasingly interconnected,” he wrote, “and I look forward to working closely with colleagues, Members, partners, media and the wider cricket community to build on the incredible work already underway across the ICC.”
Bringing the ICC’s public-facing work together
The restructuring places almost every point at which the ICC meets the outside world under one executive — from the campaigns that promote its tournaments and the tickets fans buy, to the merchandise, hospitality and partner experiences around its events, and now the communications and media relations that shape how the organisation itself is seen.
It also fits the direction the ICC has taken under Chief Executive Sanjog Gupta, who joined from JioStar in July 2025 and has put fans and commercial growth at the centre of the governing body’s agenda. That approach has been visible across recent events, from the INR 100 entry-level tickets and record group-stage crowds at the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, whose viewership in India passed 500 million according to ICC Chairman Jay Shah.
Thanraj’s reference to “new IP” is also notable, signalling an appetite to build commercial properties beyond the ICC’s established calendar of global events.
A rising remit at the ICC
The move is the second expansion of Thanraj’s role in under two years. He joined the ICC in January 2025 as Vice President – Commercial and Operations, before taking on the title of Vice President – Marketing and Business Development in October 2026.
He arrived from the Asian Cricket Council, where he served as Head of Events and Commercial from January 2022 and was promoted to General Manager – Events and Commercial in September 2024. His time at the ACC coincided with its 2024–2031 media rights deal with Sony Pictures Networks India, which the ACC said was worth more than 70 per cent more than the previous cycle.
Before that, Thanraj spent more than five years as Head of Sponsorship and Marketing at the Board of Control for Cricket in India, from September 2016 to December 2021. His earlier career included roles with IMG as IPL Sponsorship Manager and on the Aircel Chennai Open, as well as serving as Sponsorship Manager for the Champions League T20 in 2013 and 2014.
Signing off his announcement, Thanraj thanked “the teams I have the privilege of working with every day,” adding: “There is a lot to look forward to. Onwards.”
