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Team management must follow the process: BCCI official on Shubman Gill replacement controversy

Written by Vipin Darwade

The last few days have seen a lot of talk around the Indian team management’s call for a replacement for injured opener Shubman Gill and the national selectors’ refusal to send any more players considering the touring party already has enough back-up players.

While there have also been unnecessary questions raised on whether the selection committee initially refused to pay heed to the request from the team, a senior board official has said that the whole episode could have been avoided if the manager had written to either the secretary or the acting CEO.

“It is time for the team management to focus on the tour after the break. There has been a lot of chatter around this whole replacement business and the email from the team management to the chairman of selectors, which has apparently caused confusion in the minds of a lot of people except possibly the team management and the selectors. “I think this is on account of the fact that the team manager addressed the email to the chairman of selectors rather than to the BCCI’s acting CEO or the secretary,” the official explained.

“It is very simple, when you are on tour, if there is any requirement or difficulty, you are to speak or write to the secretary or the CEO or their office since they are your point of contact. You have to keep in mind that this is the Indian team’s tour and not a private tour and a system has to be followed.

“If funds are required, you do not just speak to the accountant and request a funds transfer because till the approvals are in place the chat would not mean anything, there is a system of checks and balances. Similarly, the selection committee is not empowered to unilaterally take a decision on the basis of an email. However, the selection committee can — if they feel the necessity — request the board if they wish to make changes and the board does usually accord approval for this.”

Elaborating further on why following the process was important in this case, the official said: “In the recent past a request for replacement has usually been discussed with the selection committee verbally and where the committee has agreed with the views of the team management they have taken up the matter with the board. In this case, too there was a verbal discussion and specific names were requested and the selectors had not agreed with the views of the team management. Therefore, if a mail had then to be written, it ought to have been to the acting CEO or the secretary.”

Explaining how there was a lapse in decision-making on part of the team management, the official said: “I am sure Girish Dongre and the Team Director and the captain who are marked on the email are well aware of the process as well. Therefore, this does not appear to be a well thought out decision to send out this email in this manner. This ought to have been avoided because you do not need this sort of a precursor to the tour.”

There has also been a trend in the recent past wherein the previous selection committee under the Committee of Administrators accepted every demand of the team management. The official explained that while it is all fair when decisions are taken in unison by both parties involved, the final call should always lie with only the selectors.

“Over the last year the selection committee has been giving the team management the replacements they have asked for and that is because of the fact that the choice of the selection committee has been coinciding with the choice of the team management. “They would however do well to accept the fact that it is not the job of the team management to select the squad or to insist on specific players as that can prove to be deeply conflicted decision making. That job is of the selection committee alone and even the office bearers cannot play a role in the selection,” the official said.

The official further pointed that differences in views should be taken in the right spirit and not seen as a breakdown in communication. “It is no surprise that the one time that there is a divergence in views, stories with motives being attributed to selectors start appearing and this must be avoided as this is unhealthy for Indian cricket and for the team management,” the official said.

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Vipin Darwade