If current trends are any indication, there is not going to be a speedy
resolution of the continuing conflict between the International Cricket
Council (ICC) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
Every step taken by either of the two bodies smacks of fresh
confrontation. One fears that matters could very well snowball again
into a fresh crisis that could engulf the cricketing world, for the path
being taken by both the ICC and BCCI is rocky - and loaded with
controversy.
The Referees' Commission obviously has the full support
of the ICC, and Gray added that after having consulted extensively with
the BCCI, ultimately without agreement, the ICC felt that it was time
for progress and action. The Referees' Commission will meet in South
Africa on February 23.
|
The latest move on the part of the ICC - to proceed with the Referees'
Commission in the aftermath of the Mike Denness affair despite the
BCCI's decision to refrain from participating in any form or manner is
bound to draw a sharp response from Jagmohan Dalmiya. The BCCI president
has been at loggerheads with the world body on one aspect or another on
the controversy, and it surely is only a matter of time before he comes
out with an uncompromising statement that can only add fuel to the fire.
The ICC's decision has been confirmed by its chief Malcolm Gray after
the governing body for the game declined the latest proposal of the BCCI
to either put the commission on hold until after the ICC Executive Board
meeting in March or to enlarge the size of the panel from three to 10
people.
Gray made the ICC's stand clear in his statement. "The Referees
Commission was a central part of the agreement between the ICC and the
BCCI to save the India - England Test match at Mohali in December.
Having agreed to this detailed and costly process, the ICC is extremely
disappointed that the BCCI will not accept the invitation to express its
strong views on these issues to the Commission."
According to Gray, following the refusal of the BCCI to participate in
the Commission, one alternative open to the ICC was to disband the
Commission altogether. But, as he pointed out, there were a number of
important issues that required immediate resolution. "After careful
consideration, we have rejected that course and decided that the
Commission should be convened and deliver its findings to the Executive
Board, as agreed with the BCCI. The ICC made a commitment to BCCI and
the public to investigate these matters, and we are obliged to meet that
commitment," Gray added by way of explanation.
The Referees' Commission obviously has the full support of the ICC, and
Gray added that after having consulted extensively with the BCCI,
ultimately without agreement, the ICC felt that it was time for progress
and action. The Referees' Commission will meet in South Africa on
February 23.
It will be interesting now to watch for the BCCI's next move. Knowing
Dalmiya, it is likely to be controversial and confrontational. All
through the crisis, the former ICC chief has adopted a hard line. He has
repeatedly made it clear that he was not going to come down from the
uncompromising stance he adopted at the start of the controversy in
November last year after Denness, a former England captain, took a hard
line against six Indian players, including icon Sachin Tendulkar.
Dalmiya has enjoyed considerable support in India as a result of his
tough stance on the issue, even as he has received brickbats from
abroad. With Dalmiya clearly having no intention of stepping down from
his tough stance on the issue, there is every chance that the
controversy is far from over.ndeed, another unhappy chapter in the world
of cricket is almost certain to unfold.