Like Mumbai's Cricket Improvement Committee, delhi stalwart madan lal wants DDCA to leave cricketing decisions to players
Like Mumbai's Cricket Improvement Committee, Delhi stalwart Madan Lal wants DDCA to leave cricketing decisions to players
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Times, they are never changin': Madan Lal, who was India's coach from September 1996 to 1997, during a training session at Delhi's Feroze Shah Kotla. pic/Getty Images |
Following the pitch fiasco at the Feroze Shah Kotla, Delhi's former India pace bowler and coach Madan Lal wants former cricketers to be involved in local cricket administration.
The Delhi and District Cricket Association could do well to follow in the footsteps of Mumbai Cricket Association that has a special committee comprising former cricketers the Cricket Improvement Committee (CIC) to decide on cricketing matters and appointments. Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar is president of MCA's CIC, which also includes another former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar and Sanjay Manjrekar.
Smooth functioning For the smooth functioning of Delhi cricket, the 1983 World Cup hero Madan Lal feels the DDCA should form such a committee of former cricketers.
The fifth one-day match between Sri Lanka and India was abandoned midway on Sunday due to an unfit wicket causing tremendous embarrassment to Indian cricket.
"I agree politicians and experts from other fields are important. But, there is a myth that cricketers cannot do anything. I don't want to get involved in things which I don't know about. For instance, don't involve a cricketer in the marketing side but where cricketing decisions are concerned, I am sure a cricketer will do a better job. A cricketer is aware what foreign teams require... what are the needs of an Indian player... what a state player requires and what a league player requires," Madan Lal told MiD DAY yesterday.
"Currently, except Chetan Chauhan no cricketer is involved in DDCA's administration. I played for 20 years but I hardly go to the DDCA, except when I was coaching which also doesn't have a professional set-up," said Madan Lal.
"Virender Sehwag had raised all these issues but they swept them all under the carpet," he added.
"As a former Delhi player what has happened is very embarrassing. They should have played some matches and tested the wicket. If they had the right people to advise them, they could have followed Andhra Pradesh Cricket Association's example in this very series, who did the right thing by admitting that they could not host the second ODI because of the political situation and the match was shifted to Nagpur at the last minute," said Madan Lal.
