We Are In Problem But Need To Wait Till January 3: Anurag Thakur
Dec 24, 2016 at 1:03 PM
Under-fire BCCI president Anurag Thakur has said the board will have to keep everything on hold until January 3 – the day the Supreme Court gives its much-awaited verdict over the implementation of the Justice Lodha Committee recommendations.
Speaking at the sidelines of a promotional event in New Delhi, Thakur said the long tussle between the board and the Supreme Court-appointed panel has not been in the best interest of the players. The board has been reluctant to implement the reforms suggested by the Lodha Panel which has forced the panel to ask Supreme Court to remove the top brass of the board. Not only that, there have been several instances when the cricket board has threatened to cancel matches due to lack of funds.
“We know the current situation is not in the best interest of cricketers but the matter is sub-judice. We are in problem and we need to wait till January 3,” Thakur said on Friday.
Taking a dig at some former players who have backed the Lodha Committee reforms, Thakur said:“The BCCI has created its own infrastructure without taking a single penny from the government. Yet some former cricketers, not all, speak against us.”
He also targetted the International Cricket Council (ICC) for not including the world’s richest cricket board in the working committee.
“I was there at the meeting and every member felt that for a stronger cricket world, one needs the BCCI. If anyone thinks that they can work without us, they should know global cricket needs the BCCI,” he said.
Meanwhile, the BCCI chief even had a word of advice for the ICC after they snubbed India Test captain Virat Kohli from the Test team of the year. The team was selected on the basis of the players’ performances in the period from 14 September 2015 to 20 September 2016 and as a result, Kohli, who scored three double-centuries in 2016, missed out on a place in the team.
“I think the ICC should look into the matter. They can try and consider the period of January to December per year for such feats so that a player in good form is not missed out, as India are the no. 1 Test team. But I am happy that Ashwin has been adjudged the Test Cricketer of the Year,” he concluded.