Veteran India batsman Gautam Gambhir, on Saturday, slammed BCCI, CoA and CAB after former India skipper Mohammad Azharuddin rang the bell before the second T20I between India and Windies.
The ringing of the five-minute bell, introduced at the iconic Lord’s, is a ritual started in 2007. Ahead of the games, an eminent personality associated with the game rings the famous bell. A couple of years ago, the Cricket Association of the Bell (CAB) installed a similar kind of bell at the Eden Gardens.
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And the latest to ring the bell was former India skipper Mohammad Azharuddin. However, Gautam Gambhir was less than impressed with the authorities for inviting Azharuddin for the ceremony. Taking a dig at Azharuddin’s troubled past, Gambhir vented his anger on Twitter.
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Azharuddin was banned for life in 2000 after being found guilty of fixing matches in an investigation conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation. Azharuddin’s initial attempts of challenging the ban were unsuccessful, but in 2012, a division bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court ruled the BCCI ban illegal.
But despite the confusion over his status, the CAB went ahead and invited Azharuddin to ring the bells, leaving Gambhir less than impressed. The World Cup-winning star, known for his bold remarks, did not wait long and took to Twitter to slam the authorities, writing:
“India may have won today at Eden but I am sorry @bcci, CoA &CAB lost. Looks like the No Tolerance Policy against Corrupt takes a leave on Sundays! I know he was allowed to contest HCA polls but then this is shocking….The bell is ringing, hope the powers that be are listening.”
India may have won today at Eden but I am sorry @bcci, CoA &CAB lost. Looks like the No Tolerance Policy against Corrupt takes a leave on Sundays! I know he was allowed to contest HCA polls but then this is shocking….The bell is ringing, hope the powers that be are listening. pic.twitter.com/0HKbp2Bs9r
— Gautam Gambhir (@GautamGambhir) November 4, 2018
Coming to the game, India defeated Windies by 5 wickets in the first game to go one nil up in the three-match series.
Rohit Sharma’s decision to bowl first turned out to be spot on. Led by Kuldeep Yadav’s three-wicket haul, India restricted the visitors for just 109 for 8 in the allotted 20 overs. Windies, however, were not ready to throw in the towel yet as they made the match out of it. India lost both of their openers for just 16 runs on the board. They soon found themselves 4 down for 45.
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But Dinesh Karthik and Manish Pandey all but sealed the game with a 38-run stand before the latter departed. Karthik and debutant Krunal Pandya then took the team home inside 18 overs.