Board members fear losing their powers - Bindra

Inderjit Bindra, who formed a formidable partnership with Jagmohan Dalmiya in the 90s before they split, has said that the BCCI needs to be shape up its management, offer more to spectators and improve the condition of domestic cricket. But he felt the board's fear of losing control hindered them from becoming professional.

"We need more professionals involved in our cricket," Bindra said to Mid Day. "There's no point in having honorary people. Cricket is massive business now and you need men who can take care of the media for 24 hours. The media makes cricket great. You have to reach them ... they shouldn't [have to] reach you. The board should be the best corporate house in India.

"I think the members fear that they will lose their powers in a professional setup. It is basic insecurity. But if you are willing to realise that you will control and supervise them, there will be no insecurity."

Bindra spoke about how the board could be more like a corporate house. "You have decision-makers, like a board of directors. Then, you have professionals. In corporate houses, the board lays down the policy but the professionals do other work."

One of the board's priorites, Bindra believed, was to make conditions more comfortable for spectators. "Money is not being misused but more funds should be used into channels like improving public amenities," said Bindra. "Why haven't we analysed as to why so many matches are abandoned due to poor crowd behaviour. People stand for six hours to enter the stadium. They can't go out to even get a bottle of water because they will lose their seat. They are packed like sardines. We have a tremendous public but we can't treat them like sardines.

"If cricket is so big today, it is because of the paying public. I have always maintained we have short-changed the paying public. We say that we are the best in terms of money but the facilities we offer to the public are perhaps worse than other countries in the subcontinent. Pakistan has better media facilities and public amenities than us."

Bindra pointed out that there was no way India could be the best team in the world with the state domestic cricket was in. " Unless our first-class cricket does well, we can't say that we are the best in the world. For example, the 1995 Ranji Trophy final between Bombay and Punjab at the Wankhede Stadium attracted only a handful, while 10- to 15,000 came to watch a veterans tournament ... This is something that all of us associated with the game should be very concerned about," Bindra said, admitting his failure to market the game properly when he was president of the BCCI.

Even then, he lauded Dalmiya's contribution to the sport, saying that his services had benefited world cricket. "I supported the move to make Dalmiya patron-in-chief because of his services to cricket. I found him a very competent administrator and he is, obviously, extremely popular with board members. I thought it would be a fitting post for him after his term comes to an end." But Bindra expected Dalmiya to be uninvolved in the board's decisions as he explained that "A patron-in-chief is like a president emeritus - a figurehead. A patron is more of a constitutional head who provides an overall umbrella without interfering with decisions."