WITH THE introduction of league cricket the game is set for a complete changeover and it is for the cricketers and general public who need to build pressure on the old order (cricket boards); so that the transformation is smooth.

Let’s just look at some of the turmoils that have erupted:

Domestic players in India found at the receiving end:

League cricket was formulated to uplift the economic and social status of the domestic Indian player. However, one set of players playing with the Indian Cricket League (ICL) face an unjustified ban. I guess it is for the players as a united front (both those with the ICL and BCCI contract), that need to question the justification of the ban. The Board of Controlfor Cricket in India (BCCI) cannot justify the ban on basis of maintaining its monopoly and therefore are obliged to answer the players and the general public the real reason of the ban on the ICL players.

So why does the BCCI get away with murder?

The answer lies that the players are not united. The onus lies on stalwarts like Tendulkar, Kumble, Dravid and Ganguly to leverage their illustrious position and encompass the entire Indian players’ fraternity. The fact that India does not have a players union is the reason for the BCCI issuing diktats. I would be interested to know what Tendulkar and Co feel about the ICL and its players? Do they feel the ban is justified?

I guess the players need to unite not only for the ICL cause, but for the larger picture; it is not distant memory when the BCCI abandoned its support to the Indian players after the 2007 World Cup fiasco. When the going is good the BCCI has supported its players, but the problem arises when the chips are down and any professional player is aware that things can not be always rosy in a cricketer’s career, therefore, they need to unite so that the next time the chips are down they have their own fraternity backing them.

It is only the players who bear the brunt:

The Indian Premier League (IPL) proposed Champions Cup has been in the news due to all the wrong reasons, especially with the rich representation of the ICL players across the county teams. The interesting fact arising is that the players face a ban, but that does not hold true for officials.

How else can one explain the smooth transition of Shishir Hatangadi from ICL to IPL, who is now on the periphery of becoming a national selector?

This is an open reminder to all the players, especially the stalwarts like Kumble, Shastri and Gavaskar that players and officials are not treated on basis of the same yardstick.

Hopefully, Kumble and Co will encompass the entire Indian cricketer fraternity to resolve the ICL issue. It would also be interesting to see if the media poses this question to these stalwarts. After all if West Indies cricket board can foresee the benefit of Stanford and his resources why can’t the BCCI see the positive impact of Kapil and his ICL fraternity?