Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Respected Dr Muthiah,
I am indeed constrained to write this note hoping you would acknowledge the spirit in which it is being penned down. But first things first my heartfelt condolences to you and your folks on losing a giant called MA Chidambaram. While your father left behind a financial empire for all of you to be genuinely grateful, for an average Indian like yours truly, an institution from the top bracket has been dislodged. If only to remind us all that death, like cricket, is the greatest leveller. But in your case a huge personal loss has sadly coincided with the appaling state of Indian cricket as millions followed the debacle Down Under with utter disgust and disdain.
I must confess I am very depressed in the process of reminding you that as the president of the BCCI, both you are your colleagues within the BCCI owe an explanation to the nation. I say this with a fair amount of courage of conviction and strength of character which helped me represent the country at the international for morethan a decade. You may think I was lucky, which is something I will accept most graciously. In a country as vast as ours and with ever increasing population, the element of luck must play a stellar role in getting international recognition.
Now, this is one phenomenon which may not register with the BCCI officials, who are more familiar with behind-the-scene manipulations. Nothing wrong with that provided everybody concerned with Indian cricket chips in with his contribution in an endeavour to keep principle ahead of profit, and form over substance. Fortunately, in the last couple of decades, the BCCI has managed to be market-savvy to catch up with the rest of the sporting world. Unfortunately, the script to promote the standard of domestic cricket has been lost between commercial priorities.
I feel very sorry for M/s Kapil Dev and Sachin Tendulkar because the system which provides for toughness of competition is simply non-existent. How I wish someone like yourself would come out in the open to defendKapil and Tendulkar. But more importantly, make a clarion call for complete overhauling of the domestic circuit. This bold and courageous step has to come from the top, i.e. the president of the BCCI who, if I may suggest, has pedigree on his side.
We see our cricketers on the box and also in the print media woefully short of competitive edge. What we don’t see is the administrative angle which is ever so bereft of cricket planning and imagination. M/s Tendulkar and company were found wanting in technical matters more than anything else. My pertinent query is: When did the technical committee of the BCCI meet last? And what are the aims and functions of that particular committee?
Then we have the Tournaments and Fixtures Committee going through with the chores most casually. There is a new committee to look into the preparation of First Class wickets with former Test stars but no horticulture expert. There are numerous other sub-committees whose performance is seldom analysed.
The entire BCCIfunctioning is so pathetically unaccountable, how can we possibly hold our players responsible for the drop in standards. It is grossly unfair to send a team on a tough assignment to Australia with barest minimum preparation. The morale of our boys is pretty low. It would take a Herculean task to get them to perform to their potential against the South Africans.
Now is the time to tell ourselves we will either find a way or make one. Please delay it no further for good and evil, reward and punishment are the only motives to a rational creature; these are the spurs and reins whereby all mankind is set to work and be guided. Harold Larwood was once told by his captain, the ruthless Douglas Jardine: "Nothing worthwhile was ever achieved without pain and sacrifice." I shall close the segment on this note.
With warm personal regards
Yours in cricket
BS Bedi
