We have a new President at the helm of the Board of Control for Cricket in India and much to the joy of fans, it is Sourav Ganguly, an ardently loved cricketer and a vehemently backed former Indian captain. We might have Union Minister, Anurag Thakur to thank for this after Ganguly edged Brijesh Patel to give his fans a welcome surprise.
That Ganguly is bold and does not fear going against set norms will come as a relief to many who have been circumspect about the functioning of the BCCI. Ganguly's first message post his election to Times of India was, “I am taking over at a time when BCCI has not been in the greatest of positions for the last three years. Its image has got hampered quite a lot. It's a great opportunity for me to do something good.”
Known for the manner in which he restored the faith of fans in the sport after the match fixing saga in the early 2000s, Ganguly will have a similar task at hand with BCCI. While Indian cricket is in its heydays and the team as such is out-performing expectations, the arrogance and dominance of a few haven't sat down well with fans.
Read: Ex-India skipper Ganguly poised to become cricket board chief
Primary among them is Ravi Shastri, the head coach of the national team. In 2016, when Anil Kumble was chosen over Shastri as head coach, Sourav Ganguly was in the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC). Shastri had then laid blame upon this committee for not being made the head coach.
When Shastri was indeed re-appointed after Kumble's strained relationship with the national team skipper, Ganguly said, “Ravi has been doing this for five years, and has now been given this responsibility for two more years. I don't think anyone else in history has got such a long time with the team." He, however, went on to add that “they (BCCI) didn't have too many choices as not many had applied (for the coach's job)."
The indirect vibe from this is that Ganguly wasn't too pleased with Shastri's appointment. The sudden appointment of Ganguly as BCCI President would have taken Shastri aback too. The Bengal all-rounder and former skipper will now be his boss and that might be a hard pill to swallow for the head coach.
Ganguly has only 10 months in his first tenure as BCCI President so there may not be enough time to make wholesale changes in the functioning of the body. But that he chose to stand for the election is evidence that Ganguly has a few things in his mind that he believes should be done for the betterment of Indian cricket. Should that worry Ravi Shastri? Probably. Maybe. Surely.
Read: Why Sourav Ganguly is the perfect fit as BCCI President
Featured image courtesy: AFP / Deshkalyan Chowdhury
