John Harnden named 2015 World Cup chief executive

John Harnden, the chief executive of the South Australian Cricket Association (SACA), has been appointed the chief executive of the 2015 World Cup, which will be held in Australia and New Zealand.

Harnden was formerly chief executive of the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games, chief executive of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation and chief executive of Village Roadshow International Theme Parks.

"John is known and admired around the world for his strategic thinking, the personal commitment he brings to every task, his ability to build and lead outstanding teams and his willingness to work collaboratively with everyone involved in a project," James Strong, the chairman of the 2015 World Cup, said.

Harnden said he was looking forward to starting work on the tournament. "Cricket is a passion for me from a personal and a professional perspective. I am delighted to be a part of the 2015 World Cup and look forward to working with James Strong and the rest of the board as well as everyone at New Zealand Cricket and Cricket Australia. We will make this a real partnership across the Tasman."