A Rap For The Board, A Marathoner's Tale And A ‘heady High'

There is no sport without controversy. And2016 being the year of the Olympics, THERE WERE LOADS OF IT. 

- Stan Rayan

This is an institution that was once the envy of the sporting world, an organisation that had bag-loads of cash that it even began dictating terms to cricket’s world body, the International Cricket Council.

But what a stunning change!

The Board of Control for Cricket in India is now at the mercy of the Supreme Court and ironically, it has fallen into a pit of its own making.

For years, the BCCI has turned a deaf ear to its players; it even went to the extent of virtually gagging them. It changed rules to suit itself, favoured some States, did little to promote the sport on the global stage and kept away from the Asian Games.

And when the Supreme Court appointed Justice R. M. Lodha Committee tried to set the house in order, revamp the Board and bring about transparency and accountability, the BCCI cried foul. It began running around like a confused chicken.

And after waiting for months for the Indian cricket body to implement fully the recommendations, the Supreme Court sacked the BCCI President, Anurag Thakur, and Secretary Ajay Shirke from their posts on January 2 for failing to make the suggested changes.

“This is the logical consequence. Once the recommendations were accepted by the court, it had to be implemented,” former Chief Justice R. M. Lodha, the chairman of the Lodha Committee, said after the Supreme Court passed its order.

“There were obstructions, there were impediments ... obviously this had to happen, and it has happened. The Supreme Court itself has ensured that its order of July 18 is now enforced.

“It’s a victory for cricket and it will flourish. Administrators come and go, ultimately it is for the game.”

The BCCI’s current plight, where it has been told how its administrative set-up should be and how long its officials can sit on the board, should probably be the biggest churning the sport has seen.