In perhaps the biggest clean up operation till date, the BCCI on Monday removed the all powerful former chief N Srinivasan and also coming down on the conflict of interest of former cricketers Anil Kumble, Ravi Shastri and Roger Binny. Shashank Manohar the soft spoken president of BCCI came down heavily on persons with conflict of interest in what is clearly seen as a major move undertaken by cricketing board to redeem its image.
To start with, at the BCCI AGM, Srinivasan was removed as India’s representative at the International Cricket Council (ICC), thereby automatically losing the post of chairman of the world body. But it is worth mentioning here that Srinivasan’s fate was sealed the day Manohar took over as BCCI president early last month. In 2014, Srinivasan stepped down as BCCI chief after the Supreme Court stated that he was having a conflict of interest, but refused to relinquish his post as ICC chairman.
Thereafter, the BCCI turned its focus on Ravi Shastri the Indian team’s director. He was removed from his post as member of the IPL governing council. Former Indian all-rounder Roger Binny has been dropped as the national selector from the south zone The reason for his is simple–Binny’s son, Stuart, is a part of the Indian team. In the past, Indian selectors have come under heavy fire for sticking with Stuart.
Thereafter it was Anil Kumble’s turn to face Manohar’s wrath. The celebrated spinner, who is now contracted with the Board as a commentator, had to vacate his position as the head of the BCCI’s technical committee. He will be replaced by former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly.
Despite all these steps, people feel there is still a long way to go for the board to clean its image. If the new “conflict of interest” rules are fully implemented by the BCCI in the coming months, a few current Indian players are also likely to come under the scanner. BCCI rules clearly state that coaches and selectors should not be associated with any private coaching academies or with a player management company or player agent, even in an honorary capacity. And, if the BCCI has its way, some of the current players would not be allowed to have a business interest in the player management companies that represent them. This implies that Virat Kohli and MSDhoni’s business interests will now be under the scanner.
Kohli is closely associated with sports management company Cornerstone, which also represents the likes of Rohit Sharma, Murali Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan. In fact, two companies of which Kohli is co-owner are both Cornerstone ventures. Dhoni is on the board of directors of India Cements and also holds shares of Rhiti Sports, a sports management company. If the BCCI indeed wants to overhaul the way cricket in the country is run as a whole, then action against Kohli and Dhoni seems necessary.
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