Madrasi in the UK

Friday, December 16, 2005

Indian cricket

While living in the UK, I couldn't catch up with Indian cricket much due to various reasons. All this has changed now that I am in India and so every other chat topic with friends or office colleagues turns out to be on India's biggest religion - Cricket. Of late the Indian team has shown good promise under the leadership of Rahul Dravid and with an Australian at the helm of affairs.
But on the flip side, controversies have been coming the way of BCCI. The first one was of course the episode of Ganguly being taken out of his captaincy and then dropped out of the team. After all that high tension drama when Ganguly was called back for the test series against Sri Lanka, it was a happy coming for India's former successful skipper. But all that changed when he was dropped from the team and that too after a descent showing in the tests. The man pitted against him was Yuvaraj Singh and the selectors unanimously voted for him. But initially before the selection commitee could decide their team, Chappell was given a chance to speak and that turned out to be the killer for Ganguly. Chappell told that Ganguly doesn't gel well with other team members, his bowling and fielding is inept and for the future a la 2007, Yuvraj Singh would be a better option. I do not disagree that Yuvi should be in the team but having brought Ganguly back in, this is not the way to pave his exit. The selectors have rubbed it in very much and the whole country is shocked and angry. I am equally troubled to see the way things have unfolded for Ganguly. I aint no big fan of this chap but you cannot treat a man of Ganguly's calibre like this. Whatever has been said and done, I am sure the price of kolkatta would rise like a phoenix and find a place back in the team.