BCCI deserves to answer 'reserve' riddle
Posted on Mar 18, 2008 at 10:15 | Updated Mar 18, 2008 at 21:13
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Tags: cricket, india, test selection
New Delhi: Some things about the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) never change. One of those things is the language they use to describe a certain situation.
Take a load of this - Murali Kartik had a twisted ankle, so Piyush Chawla is a 'reserve'. Kartik was subsequently declared unfit and Chawla took his place. However, when the same measures, or similar, are used for Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the terminology is different. If Dhoni were to fail the fitness test on March 21, then Dinesh Karthik would take his place.
But Karthik is not a 'reserve'.
It may be a rather Freudian mindset, but it seems that the BCCI is hoping that Murali Kartik would fail the test, while Dhoni would not. Kartik has had a lot of raw deals in his life, but it would possibly neither insult him, nor our intelligence, if someone bit the bullet and decided that his time was over, and Chawla was an investment for the future. Much better than this virtual carrot, and the inevitable stick to follow.
But the shocker of this selection is Wasim Jaffer staying and Gautam Gambhir not getting in.
Jaffer averaged 8.16 from six innings Down Under, with a top score of 16. On the face of that, any first-class cricketer would have a strong case to replace him. The sad part is that Jaffer cannot even begin to compare with Gambhir when it comes to batting, and fielding. But he finds himself in the side, while Gambhir does not. And please spare me the nonsense about Gambhir being a One-day International player.
There were some murmurs that the selectors wanted a 15-player squad, while BCCI wanted only 14. So Gambhir did not get in. No wonder Chairman of Selectors Dilip Vengsarkar did not come out to face the media!
One would also have to feel a bit sorry of Aakash Chopra. Our selectors and BCCI mandarins have frequently gone on about how domestic performances are what decide a player's future as an India player. By that claim, Chopra should have walked into the side eyes closed. But that did not happen.
It’s possible that the selectors cannot envisage three openers from Delhi - Gambhir, Chopra and Virender Sehwag. But that whole remarkable coincidence may now never happen anyway, since if this can't get Chopra into the side, nothing will.
Then there is the strange saga of Yuvraj Singh. Vengsarkar, one impatient day, said Yuvi had himself to blame for not being able to cement his place in the Test side after eight years. So the selectors decide lump in some more adhesives, and stick him to the squad again. An average of 4.25 (even RP Singh did better) is not reason enough to keep him out. As in Chopra's case, if this doesn't get him out of the Test team, nothing will.
Harbhajan Singh was declared fit, but will undergo a fitness test with Dhoni. Now that makes sense. Exactly how Bhajji, who has made more headlines than the nuclear deal, was declared fit we don't know, especially since he was not present for the fitness test. But if Yuvi can play, so can Bhajji, since he looks fitter than Yuvi anyway.
The rest would not dazzle your imagination. Sreesanth, RP Singh and Irfan Pathan will have to fight it out for two spots in the batting line-up, while the other two will be spinners, skipper Anil Kumble and Harbhajan, unless the skies fall.
One more thing begs an answer. If we cannot get a side for all three Tests in a home series, when can we get one? It’s a situation of faith in the players, but not that much faith.
That applies to the BCCI as well. The more things change, the more they remain the same.
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