Sanap to challenge Buch for USACA vice-president

Ganesh Sanap, the president of the Northern California Cricket Association (NCCA), has thrown his hat into the ring to fill the vacant vice-president position for the USA Cricket Association (USACA). Sanap told ESPNcricinfo that he will run for the position against Hemant Buch. Both men are involved with cricket administration in the San Francisco Bay Area, and it now appears that a regional rivalry will be played out on the national stage.

"I just want to bring new energy to the old guard," Sanap said. Sanap traveled with USA's U-19 squad to New Zealand for the 2010 ICC U-19 World Cup, where he served as team statistician. If elected, he says his focus will be on youth development, which he feels has been badly neglected by USACA.

"As far as the national administration is concerned, all they care about is funding tournaments, which is basic duty of course. Other than that, there has been no plan shown by anyone on the national level that they care about the growth of the game or development of the sport.

"Only a handful of committed people at the regional level, they've been doing it by themselves. Some have vested interests; some have real passion for the sport. There won't be any vested interests from me."

Sanap served as secretary of the NCCA from 2006 to 2007 before taking over as president of the league in 2008. The league had 33 teams in 2010, and Sanap says his biggest accomplishment was the formation of the NCCA youth program and U-19 team.

"It's one of the best. My major focus on the league level as well as the national level will be getting more programs in place for youth cricket, identify coaches across the nation, across the various regions, and then if possible, have a few dollars earmarked for them to hold those regular coaching camps, at least a two-day session or a weekend every month to coach U-19 players or youth and then gather reports from them, maintain a database of how the players are progressing."

According to John Aaron, Secretary of USACA, the general elections for USA's governing body will take place "sometime between March 8 and November 30" following guidelines from the USACA constitution. A USACA board meeting is scheduled for January 15-16 in New York in conjunction with the departure of the USA squad traveling to Hong Kong for the ICC World Cricket League Division Three tournament. Aaron believes that the date of this year's USACA elections will be finalized at the upcoming board meeting, but said that a full meeting agenda hadn't been finalized.

Depending on the date selected for the elections, Aaron also indicated that someone may be appointed to fill the USACA vice president position left vacant after the resignation of Nabeel Ahmed up until the elections are held.