The uproar over former captain Sourav Ganguly’s omission from the final Test against Sri Lanka had led to a whole lot of shaking and off the field antics even before a single delivery was bowled. With the BCCI Selection Committee’s eye raising decision triggering off demonstrations in Kolkata, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee summed up the mood when he said that Sourav’s ouster from the team was an act of injustice.
While the emotional underpinnings of a cricket crazed public is hardly surprising what, should be of concern vis-à-vis the decision to drop Sourav, is the strong reaction coming from former cricketers who are as much rattled over the way the deposed captain was sacked. Even the newly elected BCCI President Sharad Pawar sought to wash his hands off the matter by expressing shock over the decision and promising to discuss the issue with the selectors in the coming days. All this clearly suggests that public criticism over the selector’s decision is not without basis with Sourav’s name even finding its way into the corridors of power (Parliament).
The problem though with this entire political fan fare thing is that something such as team selection ought to be essentially a cricketing matter and not one that requires a political decision for it would then mean that in future any number of team selection may henceforth become an ominous political exercise. That the Left Front, a major constituent of the UPA government, has also taken up the cudgel against the selector’s decision only confirms this fear that politics may conveniently enter the drawing boards of the BCCI. While today it is the West Bengal Chief Minister demanding Sourav’s retention, tomorrow it could be his counterparts from Karnataka or Andhra Pradesh. If professionalism is not embossed immediately into the selection process of the Indian cricket team it would destroy the morale of players and discredit the very institution of the BCCI.
To be fair to Sourav, he did deserve to get another shot. He did not fare badly either in the two innings he played at the Ferozshah Kotla. The most successful Indian captain ever that he was, Sourav certainly did not merit such a harsh verdict. However, as much as one would like to doubt the decision already taken, it would only be fair to say to Sourav that his return to the team will depend on his performance and he ought to prove this more than anything else and there is no reason why he cannot return as long as he starts making runs and let his bat do the talking. In the case of Sourav, the chance to prove his worth on the field is a right that cannot be denied to him.
One has to also respect the decision of the selectors who were understood to have been largely influenced by Coach Greg Chappell’s views on team composition for the Ahmedabad match aided by those of Captain Rahul Dravid. At the end of the day there can be only 11 players on the field and the coach and captain must be allowed to work without hindrance so that the best Indian team represents the country. And as rightly pointed out by Sourav himself, the team needs to be supported — not an individual.
