These have been a couple of interesting weeks for cricket as the sport’s hierarchy were discussing the future of the game. Travel restrictions have meant that the International Cricket Council’s Directors couldn’t not travel to Dubai but discussed matters in video conference calls.
Top cricket bosses have remained tight lipped about behind the scenes happenings but a close examination gives you an indication, that cricket’s balance of power is shifting towards India, again.
It was a huge call for the ICC to shift its benchmark tournament – the 50 over World Cup from the allotted slot of March-April to October – November 2023. What it has done is to give the BCCI a clear window to conduct the IPL in that period of March – April. ICC and rest of the cricketing world would have agreed to it reluctantly. They had Hobson’s choice.
IPL 2020 likely to be played in UAE between September and November
The magnitude of the decision has not received the attention it should. Insiders to the ICC believe that such crafty maneuvering is possible only with someone like N. Srinivasan. So, is Srinivasan set to make a comeback to cricket’s hottest seat – as President of the ICC? Or, is there someone else who is rising steadily within Indian cricket circles?
It’s no secret that Srini, as he is fondly called, wants to have another crack as cricket’s boss. But at 75, there are questions about his health. More importantly, in order to have any chance of getting there, he needs to get the blessings of the BJP government which he will not get (You will see why later).
In our part of the world, there is this misconception that Srini did much damage to the game. But is that the truth? His company India Cements has been playing cricket from 1970s onwards. Some of the leading names of Indian cricket have been employed by Srini. Although the popular notion is that IPL, where Srini owns a franchise, harmed Test cricket, the truth is when he was President of BCCI, India played more Tests than ever before.
Of course, he looked after the interests of Indian cricket. Not many were pleased at the ‘Big Three’s’ takeover of the ICC. But realistically, after the takeover, Sri Lanka Cricket benefited financially with India agreeing to tour the island regularly. So, the takeover actually didn’t affect smaller boards.
Jagmohan Dalmiya, Calcutta based businessman tycoon, had first taken the fight to England and Australia at the ICC level and in 1993 the veto power those countries enjoyed was abolished. Several years later, Srinivasan took India’s power to a new level. Most cricket playing nations, except maybe England, will feel the pinch if they antagonize India. Knowing this, Srinivasan played his cards smartly. In the end, all toed the line.
Those who didn’t were taught harsh lessons. Arjuna Ranatunga is a case in point. Arjuna clashed with the BCCI in 2008 when he was the President of SLC on matters of principles. Srini was then Secretary of BCCI and he only had to flex his muscle. The Sri Lankan government was told that future tours by India were in jeopardy as long as Arjuna headed SLC. Arjuna was removed and 48 hours later, Srini himself flew down to Colombo to announce an additional cricket tour by the Indian cricket team. Those were the times.
India taking the lion’s share of ICC events was a bitter pill to swallow for most, but the argument was sound. India was bringing most money for the game and deserved to be paid back handsomely.
ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2020 postponed
When Srini got into trouble, with the Supreme Court of India bringing him to ground, one of his predecessors – Shashank Manohar, a lawyer from Nagpur, rose to prominence in cricket circles and went onto serve a second term as ICC President.
Manohar abolished the Big Three concept and created a level playing field.
Now that Manohar is gone, India seem to stamping their authority again. Who will host the postponed T20 World Cup remains to be seen. While ICC seems to be wanting the status quo to remain with Australia hosting the 2021 event and India’s event to be pushed back to 2022, BCCI doesn’t want to be having back to back ICC events in 2022 and 2023 for obvious reasons.
Former captain Sourav Ganguly is the face of Indian cricket having been elected President of BCCI in October last year. Although Sourav is not a nominal President as he heads his own state – Cricket Association of Bengal – the big calls seem to be made from elsewhere. There are two key figures of Indian cricket whose names we are sure to hear frequently as we move forward – Jay Shah, Secretary and Arun Singh Dhumal, Treasurer, both of whom have got firm government backing, which is why Srinivasan is at a disadvantage.
Shah is only 31 years old and hails from Gujarat. He is the son of Indian Home Minister Amit Shah, number two to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Dumal, from north India is the younger brother of Anurag Thakur, a former President of BCCI and current Indian minister of state for finance and corporate affairs. One of them, most likely Shah, could be calling the vital shots on how the game is run these days. You hardly notice his influence as he is crafty enough to stay in the background.
*Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of ThePapare.com.
