Shamik Chakrabarty, Mumbai
Changes are on the cards in Indian cricket administration across different state associations. To start with, Sourav Ganguly is set to return to the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) as its president.
In Madhya Pradesh, Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia’s son Mahanaryaman is likely to be elected unopposed as the president at the state association’s AGM on September 2.
Down south, former India medium-pacer Venkatesh Prasad’s team has launched its election manifesto, making a vow to bring back transparency at the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) and cricket at Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Ganguly came to top-level cricket administration in 2014 as CAB joint-secretary before becoming the association president a year later. Eden Gardens got a facelift during his tenure. In 2019, he took the helm of the BCCI and served in that capacity until 2022 before going to a mandatory cooling-off. Bengal cricket needs someone of the former India captain’s stature to make the CAB’s voice heard in the BCCI.
As regards Scindia Jr, the 29-year-old is currently the vice-president of Gwalior Cricket Association. He will follow in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, Madhavrao Scindia, if he takes the reins of the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association (MPCA).
KSCA and Chinnaswamy’s future
Of the three, the KSCA elections are probably the most critical and important, given the present situation. The relationship between the KSCA administration headed by former left-arm spinner Raghuram Bhat and the state government ostensibly has become untenable following the Chinnaswamy stampede tragedy during Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s victory celebrations on June 4 that took 11 lives and injured 56 others.
The association has been functioning without a secretary and a treasurer since June, as they resigned taking moral responsibility. More importantly, Chinnaswamy has been losing matches — from Women’s World Cup games to Maharaja Cup fixtures.
The manifesto of Prasad’s team, a copy of which is with RevSportz, has promised to address the situation.
“Rebuild and strengthen relations with the Government and civic authorities to restore M. Chinnaswamy Stadium as India’s premier cricket venue,” says the first point of the manifesto. The second and third points speak about bringing international matches back to “this historic ground” and conducting a “comprehensive stadium safety audit”.
Prasad earlier served as the KSCA vice-president from 2013-2016. This time, his team has ex-India women’s captain Shantha Rangaswamy and former KSCA office-bearer Vinay Mruthyunjaya.
The immediate challenge for the team, if they come to power, will be to address the safety concerns. A one-member committee appointed by the state government deemed Chinnaswamy Stadium “unfit and unsafe” to host big matches. Prasad and his team will face tough challenges.
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