BCCI, the Indian media and shades of grey
The coverage of the go-karting trip by sections of the Indian media has once again highlighted why the players try to stay as far away from reporters as possible
Nitin Sundar
25-Feb-2013
The coverage of the go-karting trip by sections of the Indian media has once again highlighted why the players try to stay as far away from reporters as possible. In the Open magazine, Boria Majumdar details how both parties are to blame for the impending collapse of trust between India's cricketers and its news media.
Whatever the Indian media’s compulsions, the reasons for India’s failure have to do with issues that have been highlighted in this magazine over the past few weeks. The moot questions are, does India consider Test cricket its top priority? Secondly, will the BCCI stop criticising the media for rightly blaming inconsequential tournaments like the Champions League as the real cause behind player fatigue and injury? Finally, will the BCCI ensure Indian players get enough rest?
It is the duty of the media to highlight these issues and to put pressure on the BCCI to take correctives. The BCCI cannot begrudge them that. However, unreasonable stories like the go-karting or winery excursions will not help our cricket. Nor will such stories enhance the anyway dubious reputation of the media. Instead, these stories will divide the team and the touring media who need to feed off each other at times of crisis.
Nitin Sundar is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo