Bindra's charge against BCCI on team selection

Inderjit Singh Bindra, President of the Punjab Cricket Association on Sunday lashed out at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) saying its discriminatory policies were harming the players of some states and 'over commercialisation' of cricket was adversely affecting the game.

He alleged that an 'important functionary ' of the Board was either directly or indirectly giving instructions to selection committee members to ignore players of some particular states including Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Hyderabad which had voted against the ruling group in the Board elections in September last year.

Addressing a press conference at the PCA Stadium in Mohali, Bindra said that in his 20 years association with the BCCI, including his term as its President, he had never seen 'direct interference' of the board in selection of the teams. ``Our boys are suffering not for cricket reasons, but due to politics in the Board,'' he added.

MP Pandove, secretary of the Association and a former national selector intervened to say that last year they ignored the non-selection of eligible Punjab players, thinking the action was inadvertantly done. But this time some of the players including Harbhajan Singh and Pankaj Dharmani had been told by some selectors that they would be deliberately kept out as long as they played for Punjab.

Pandove said that Harbhajan Singh was rated as one of the best off-spinners in the country but he was threatened by the zonal selector that if he do not shift from Punjab, he would not be included in the Challenger Trophy teams or other teams. Pandove quoted Harbhajan Singh as having told him and Bindra this with tears in his eyes.

Initially Bindra declined to name any particular person who was issuing directions, but towards the end of the about hour long press conference, he said he would soon come out with all the reasons leading to his differences with Jagmohan Dalmiya which started during his tenure as BCCI President. ``Let Mr Dalmiya complete his term as ICC President because I do not want Indian cricket to be maligned abroad due to the wrong doings of one person,'' he added.

Bindra said that though four Punjab players played a key role in the India juniors team winning the World Cup in Sri Lanka, they were being ignored. Punjab had consistently for three years won junior tournaments, but the players are discriminated against, due to politics in the BCCI gripping the selection committees, he added. He further said that in the past he had differences with various Board Presidents but the players never suffered because of these differences. Cricket alone was the criteria in team selection, he said adding why not scrap the selection committees if the writ of one particular man is to run.

Bindra said that Indian cricket had been 'ruined' due to politics, resulting in selection of teams not being made on merit. The recent performance of the Indian team in Australia is an indication of things prevaling in the Board, he added. He further stated that over commercialisation of cricket was also adversely affecting the players performance. ``If sponsors, who have signed players for hefty amounts, have to decide the Indian team so that they get full mileage out of their investments, our cricket will go down further,'' he said, while charging the sponsors with interfering in the team selection.

Bindra alleged that ``players are being told that if you sign for so and so, you can play in the Indian team or else not" adding that some players, including Rahul Dravid, suffered for two years because he had not signed contracts with sponsors and advertisers, according to the wishes of some BCCI functionaries.

Bindra also took objection to zonal selector Madan Lal including Ajay Jadeja in the North Zone team to play in the Deodhar Trophy without consulting the other members of the zonal selection committee. He said that Jadeja is a good player but according to BCCI rules, the player sould be registered with an affiliated unit to play in domestic cricket. Jadeja did not represent any state after leaving Haryana, he added.