The higher the stakes of a game, the worse is the selection politics. Lack of integrity and commitment, blatant nepotism and corruption are nothing new in Indian cricket’s selection process, writes Makarand Waingankar in the Mumbai Mirror.
I have spent decades in the profession to know how the system works. In 70s the selectors would openly discuss selections with senior journalists. Selectors were open to suggestions. This was never misused. We were told that Ajit Wadekar was given the choice between Abbas Ali Baig and Dilip Sardesai for the West Indies tour of 1971. Wadekar opted for Sardesai who went on to score heavily in the series. What’s wrong if Dhoni had asked for RP Singh to be retained?
In the Mid-Day, Clayton Murzello recounts past incidents in which the captain did not agree with the selectors.
The most riveting of examples in Indian cricket is the Polly Umrigar incident in 1958-59. The captain wanted a batsman for the fourth Test in Chennai against West Indies after the sudden resignation of captain Ghulam Ahmed and the pulling out of star batsman Vijay Manjrekar. Umrigar wanted Mumbai's Manohar Hardikar but the selectors (headed by Lala Amarnath) did not give in and Services batsman AK Sengupta was picked for his one and only Test. It is also believed that then Board president RK Patel sent Jasu Patel, no relation to the BCCI boss but a man from his region. Patel did not play eventually. Umrigar quit as captain in protest overnight and Vinoo Mankad was appointed captain through a discussion behind the toilets of the Corporation Stadium (Chennai) just before the start of the Test.
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