BCA earns record profits out of Wills World Cup fixture (10 Sep 1996)

10 September 1996

BCA earns record profits out of Wills World Cup fixture

Rediff on the Net

The Bombay Cricket Association recorded whopping profits to the tune of Rs 51.28 million from the Wills World Cup league fixture between India and Australia last February, officials revealed today.

This sudden bonanza has, however, brought with it more bickering, threats of court cases and bankruptcy proceedings, allegations of attempting to undercut tenders, contracts and advertising rights, and more in that unsavoury vein.

Interestingly, the amazing profit graph does not take into account proceeds from the sale of ticket at one hundred dollars per head to the International Management Group, nor does it vector in the profits earned by the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

The two factions within the Bombay association have, instead of sharing credit for the whopping earnings, begun washing a lot of very dirty linen in public. And matters could reach a head when, on Saturday September 14, the BCA meets to elect new office bearers.

On the one side is serving president and Maharashtra Chief Minister Manohar Joshi, and on the other a group headed by Indian cricket manager Sandeep Patil and former Test star Ramakanth Desai.

Factionalism within the BCA began soon after the death of longserving president S K Wankhede in 1987. Joshi stepped in as president in 1995, ousting former Test stumper Madhav Mantri. Joshi`s takeover provoked public criticism at the time from Mantri`s nephew and Indian cricket star Sunil Gavaskar.

His rivals point out that Joshi, since his election as president, has visited the BCA premises just twice - once, to be felicitated on becoming state chief minister, the second time to inspect the damage caused by a crane collapse in the buildup to the World Cup. He is yet to attend a single one of the 29 meetings the BCA has held during his tenure. And Joshi`s supporter and BCA vice president Ajit Wadekar, busy with his own preoccupations, has not found time to attend the meetings either.

Interestingly Wadekar, who handed over the post of manager of the Indian team to Sandeep Patil, was since transferred to the Madras branch of the State Bank of India. And yet he is one of the contestants this year, the others being Ramakant Desai and former India star Dilip Vengsarkar.

Sandeep Patil, for his part, will contest for the post of BCA committee member, along with former India star Suru Nayak and former umpire Dara Dotiwala.

More problems loom ahead, with the municipal authorities threatening to demolish the new, state of the art press box at the Wankhede Stadium on the grounds that it is an illegal construction. BCA secretary Pravin Barve also informed the media that the BCA`s failure to find sponsorship for the new prismatic electronic scoreboard has resulted in losses of over Rs 20 million, and could lead the BCA to bankruptcy.

Both groups are now busy blaming each other for the two lapses, and the faction fight is expected to throw up even more accusations as the elections to the prestigious association draw ever nearer.

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