Power more important for Indian Board

Azharuddin has been a great player and the time for him had come to quit the game gracefully rather than get tempted by the glamour, earnings and the clout and finally get booted out like most of the stars in the past. But, it was an insult not only to the man but also to his contribution to Indian cricket, to not even have discussed his name while picking up the team.

Now, a few months later, the same selectors decide that Azharuddin is so important for Indian cricket, that no matter what the consequences, he and Mongia have to be back in the team. Sure, the defeat in Australia must have rattled them but how come they fell back upon a man whom they did not want to even discuss. It is here that the Indian Board must have stepped in.

If stories floating around have to be believed, the selectors were even told that they will get a sack if they did not bring back these two. They were told not to get influenced by what the coach and the captain wanted.

It mattered little to them that the captain and the coach had their reservations about the commitment of these two and had even conveyed this to the Board. The question arises: Why did the Board not try to probe this commitment issue and nail the guilty ? It is possible that Kapil and Tendulkar were using this commitment issue as a ruse to get even with Azharuddin. Whatever the reason, the probe was essential for the greater good of the game.

And what do we get instead ? A Board diktat which gets the two entry into the team once again, the captain quits, the team is demoralised and finally, even on the designer wicket, they lose. The message from the Board is clear: Don’t mess with us. We are the kings and for us, controlling power is more important then the interest of Indian cricket.