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Gavaskar hopes for early conclusion of BCCI's court drama
Sunil Gavaskar, legendary India batsman and former captain, has expressed concerns over the delay in the announcement of the new set of administrators to run the game in the country. Gavaskar, who is also a prominent television commentator, felt that any further delay by the Supreme Court (SC) of India would only result in causing hassles in the preparations for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
"I just hope over the next few days there is a final decision taken as to the administrators appointed so we can go ahead and start planning for the IPL. I think any further delay is not going to help," Gavaskar said on Sunday (January 28).
In its hearing on January 24, the Supreme Court allowed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to suggest names for appointment of a committee of administrators to run the game in the country while making it clear that no one over the age of 70 or more should be considered for the position.
India's apex court had earlier sought names of administrators who could lead the Indian Cricket Board from amicus curiae, Anil Divan and Gopal Subramanium, but then had to backtrack from their decision after lawyers representing the Indian Cricket board as well as Mukul Rohtagi, Attorney General, representing the union government, successfully convinced the bench about the need for the BCCI as well as the central government to be involved in the process of appointing a new set of people to oversee BCCI's affairs.
They were then given time until January 27 to submit the names of such administrators in a sealed envelope upon which the court will start with the process of new appointments. "With the names to be announced Monday (January 30) or Tuesday (January 31), hopefully that will be the end of all this and we can start looking ahead," Gavaskar said.
The legendary Indian batsman, the first player to top 10,000 Test runs, however gave the thumbs-up to the Lodha Commission which suggested sweeping reforms in the functioning of one of the richest and most powerful sporting bodies of the country. "I think the reforms, while you might not agree with everything, I think they were needed. They were needed not just in Indian cricket but they are needed in all sports federations," Gavaskar said.
"Having said that, the BCCI is probably the only national sporting federation where there was a change in the offices of the president and secretary every three years and five years. There was always a new person coming. So Mr. (Sharad) Pawar had three years, Mr. Dalmiya had three years. Every one has three years, and then they moved away and the senior vice-presidents took over," he added.
However, the renowned Mumbai batsman felt that too much time was being wasted at sorting out the mess and it was only going to hurt the interests of Indian cricket. "So there was this thing happening, it's just that in other federations it is needed. Whatever it is, the Supreme Court's decision has to be respected and we all have to accept. As I said, the quicker we get ahead, the better it will be for Indian cricket," Gavaskar reckoned.
One point of conflict between the BCCI and the Lodha commission was the latter's strictures on following a one-state-one-vote policy. Gavaskar said he wasn't against Lodha's committee's take on the matter in principle but wanted clarity on the matter. "I actually have no problems with how many votes a state has. My only concern is that it should not automatically mean that states which are not ready for first-class cricket are given the Ranji Trophy or first-class status," he said.
"If for example you have one-state-one-vote because of this, every state, say Meghalaya and Nagaland, who don't have proper cricketing infrastructure are going to play Ranji Trophy when they are not ready to play first-class cricket, then I think the standard of cricket will be diluted and that's not going to help Indian cricket," Gavaskar added.
Cricbuzz
Sunil Gavaskar, legendary India batsman and former captain, has expressed concerns over the delay in the announcement of the new set of administrators to run the game in the country. Gavaskar, who is also a prominent television commentator, felt that any further delay by the Supreme Court (SC) of India would only result in causing hassles in the preparations for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
"I just hope over the next few days there is a final decision taken as to the administrators appointed so we can go ahead and start planning for the IPL. I think any further delay is not going to help," Gavaskar said on Sunday (January 28).
In its hearing on January 24, the Supreme Court allowed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to suggest names for appointment of a committee of administrators to run the game in the country while making it clear that no one over the age of 70 or more should be considered for the position.
India's apex court had earlier sought names of administrators who could lead the Indian Cricket Board from amicus curiae, Anil Divan and Gopal Subramanium, but then had to backtrack from their decision after lawyers representing the Indian Cricket board as well as Mukul Rohtagi, Attorney General, representing the union government, successfully convinced the bench about the need for the BCCI as well as the central government to be involved in the process of appointing a new set of people to oversee BCCI's affairs.
They were then given time until January 27 to submit the names of such administrators in a sealed envelope upon which the court will start with the process of new appointments. "With the names to be announced Monday (January 30) or Tuesday (January 31), hopefully that will be the end of all this and we can start looking ahead," Gavaskar said.
The legendary Indian batsman, the first player to top 10,000 Test runs, however gave the thumbs-up to the Lodha Commission which suggested sweeping reforms in the functioning of one of the richest and most powerful sporting bodies of the country. "I think the reforms, while you might not agree with everything, I think they were needed. They were needed not just in Indian cricket but they are needed in all sports federations," Gavaskar said.
"Having said that, the BCCI is probably the only national sporting federation where there was a change in the offices of the president and secretary every three years and five years. There was always a new person coming. So Mr. (Sharad) Pawar had three years, Mr. Dalmiya had three years. Every one has three years, and then they moved away and the senior vice-presidents took over," he added.
However, the renowned Mumbai batsman felt that too much time was being wasted at sorting out the mess and it was only going to hurt the interests of Indian cricket. "So there was this thing happening, it's just that in other federations it is needed. Whatever it is, the Supreme Court's decision has to be respected and we all have to accept. As I said, the quicker we get ahead, the better it will be for Indian cricket," Gavaskar reckoned.
One point of conflict between the BCCI and the Lodha commission was the latter's strictures on following a one-state-one-vote policy. Gavaskar said he wasn't against Lodha's committee's take on the matter in principle but wanted clarity on the matter. "I actually have no problems with how many votes a state has. My only concern is that it should not automatically mean that states which are not ready for first-class cricket are given the Ranji Trophy or first-class status," he said.
"If for example you have one-state-one-vote because of this, every state, say Meghalaya and Nagaland, who don't have proper cricketing infrastructure are going to play Ranji Trophy when they are not ready to play first-class cricket, then I think the standard of cricket will be diluted and that's not going to help Indian cricket," Gavaskar added.
Cricbuzz
