ICC World Cup 2019 | BCCI official claims rules are faulty regarding career options available to retired players
A BCCI official has said that the present rules are flawed which has led to retired legends having to make a choice between supporting himself financially and helping Indian cricket develop. The statement came after the Ethics Officer had questioned the role of some former players as commentators.
In 2016, the Lodha panel formed by Supreme Court had released its recommendations to clean up the game of cricket in India and free it from corruption. One of the recommendations clearly stated the policy of “one person, one position” implying a person cannot hold multiple posts to avoid conflict of interest. On these grounds, BCCI Ethics Officer DK Jain has raised concerns over the roles of players such as Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman as commentators in the World Cup, considering they are already affiliated with various IPL teams.
A member of the Committee of Administrators has responded to the claims by saying it is being pondered upon presently.
“Yes, we will discuss the issue and come to a solution as it is too restrictive. We are working on it and will let you know soon,” the member told IANS.
However, a BCCI official has claimed that the Board knew such a situation was approaching sooner or later but they were too lax to do anything about it.
“This is not about the Ethics Officer being strict or not. It is the rules that are flawed along with some of the other recommendations. These flaws were known to a few but the administrators were not willing to pay attention to them,” he said.
“The choice that now exists for the former greats, who have so much experience that can be used for strengthening Indian cricket, is simple; either support their families and provide for the education and future of their children by taking up assignments that pay well, or take up decision making positions and places on committees for the betterment of Indian cricket. If they choose the latter, they also would know that their suggestions and decisions would be assessed by a peer who is being paid an enormous amount and would also be assessed by a smartphone wielding executive with no clue about how things should function,” the official explained in a harsh statement.
While Rahul Dravid has managed to secure the role of India A coach and has done an excellent job so far, almost no other past legends has ventured into coaching jobs due to the availability of much more lucrative commercial options. But like the official goes on to explain, they cannot be blamed much for the present situation.
“Imagine a scenario where Tendulkar, Ganguly, Laxman, Sehwag and MS Dhoni were to take up assignments with broadcasters or franchisees in very crucial roles, it would be the grassroots cricketers who would be bereft of the benefit of their knowledge and experience. Rahul Dravid is being paid a handsome amount and has a key position but all these greats deserve to be at that level. Asking them to contribute at a different level would be unfair as well. It would be like asking the CEO of Microsoft to work as a General Manager at a tech start-up because the position of the CEO is already taken,” he concluded.
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