Sourav Ganguly makes impressive debut as an administrator
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly looked suave in formals as he turned up for his first day in office on Wednesday as member of the BCCI’s technical committee.
It was a remarkable occasion for the left-hander, who had inadvertently or otherwise spent the last five to six years of his tenure as player rubbing the administration the wrong way.
He walked into the board’s headquarters, spent a good three hours with top officials and other members of the committee, discussed the sport, its administration, a few technicalities and walked out to address the media.
“I hope I can do something for the game,” he said, before questions ranging from India’s current form to Rahul Dravid’s comeback in the One-day team and even the ongoing Ashes were thrown at him.
Ganguly has just begun his new innings and, as he mentioned said on Tuesday, the former batsman looks all set to prove a point in the game off the field too. For starters, the Board has given him the responsibility to go through reports submitted by match-referees on domestic pitches and assess them. On Wednesday though, he didn’t speak a lot on pitches as much as he did on other issues concerning the game. He was happy for Dravid who has made his comeback in the ODI team and said, “He’s so good in all forms of the game. His inclusion will always be a bonus.”
Ganguly also had a few words of advice – of course, first hand – for Irfan Pathan, who has not been picked among the Champions Trophy probables. “Irfan should look at the example of Dravid and (Ashish) Nehra. If you keep performing, you are bound to bounce back,” he said.
To hear Ganguly speak so authoritatively on how performances in Indian cricket have always counted and that hard work pays off, was certainly interesting. After all, his run-ins with the board as player, whether defending himself or his players, had almost become legendary.
That he’s also well-versed as ever on issues in international cricket was soon visible when he declared Aussies as favourites to win the Ashes. “After 10 years or so, England and Australia will start as equal favourites but I still have my money on Australia,” he said.
The board is bound to use Ganguly’s experience more than ever should he win the upcoming Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) elections. Moreover, to have a BCCI post, Ganguly also has to attend a minimum of two annual general meetings (AGMs), the first of which will come up in September this year.
It is no secret that Ganguly has his sights set on a successful stint as a cricket administrator.
Until then, of course, Ganguly will have to be satisfied being part of committees that decides on the technical aspects of the game. For starters, his boss in the technical committee is none other than Sunil Gavaskar.
