Banerjee to plot cricket’s strategy

FORMER Gloucestershire slow left-armer Vikram Banerjee has been given a key role at the heart of the development of cricket in England and Wales with a little help from the Professional Cricketers’ Association.

Banerjee is six months into his role as head of strategy, a new role at an exciting time for the game with a new broadcasting deal, rapid expansion of women’s cricket, home World Cup in 2019 and new T20 competition in 2020.

It is only six years since Banerjee played his last match for Gloucestershire but he has since made rapid progress in the business world, initially working for a start-up consultancy, studying for an MBA at the Harvard Business School and working as strategy manager for Whitbread.

Banerjee always seemed destined for a career in business as he graduated from Cambridge University with a degree in economics and was set to join Procter and Gamble in 2006 until Gloucestershire offered him trials and then a professional contract.

But discussions with Ian Thomas, then a personal development manager and now the PCA head of development and welfare, plus PCA funding for an Insights learning and development course helped Banerjee for his post-cricket career.

“I always thought that I would play cricket while I was enjoying it. I was fortunate enough to have a university degree and, having benefited from that, I am a massive advocate of the MCC Universities system,” Banerjee said.

“I knew if I decided to go into coaching it would be through choice not because I had to. I already had some options which is what the university system is brilliant at. I had already done some self-evaluation about who I was and what I enjoyed in life which was very beneficial.

“When I started personal development and welfare was fairly new in cricket but I benefited a huge amount from Ian’s advice and from conversations with him either as a sounding board or for direct feedback. He’s been a great help to me and I still chat to him and I owe him a great amount.”