Two cricketing greats have hung up their boots. The Indian cricket team has just beaten the best team in the world, and are now off to a flying start in the on-going seven-match one-day international series against England. The early days of Krishnamachari Srikkanth’s tenure as the chairman of selectors for the BCCI has seen a lot of good things happening. AABHAS SHARMA caught up with the 49-year-old, former captain and opening batsman to know his thoughts on the recently concluded series against Australia, and the challenges that lie ahead for him and the selection committee. Excerpts from a telephonic chat:
You couldn’t have asked for a better start as chairman of selectors. A test series win and the team is looking very good in the ODIs against England. Your comment.
As they say, so far so good. I think the team did very well against Australia, and it was a great performance from the boys. We, the selection committee, are happy with the results, and hopefully the team will continue to build on its good performance.
What kind of impact will Sourav Ganguly and Anil Kumble’s retirements have?
Both these cricketers were giants, and their contribution to Indian cricket has been immense. Indian cricket is going through transition, and it won’t be easy to expect people just coming in and replacing them. But in Amit Misra, I think we have a decent leg spinner who did a good job against Australia. There are young batsmen like Suresh Raina, M Vijay, S Badrinath who have a lot of potential.
How are you finding the job as the chairman of the selection committee?
It’s not an easy job by any standard, and there are a lot of challenges ahead of us. But we, as the selection committee, want to be extremely honest and fair in our selection policy, and work for the betterment of Indian cricket. Of course, there will be occasions when someone will question that out of a set of three players why was a particular player picked? Sometimes we will get it right, and there will be times when our decisions might be wrong. The most important thing though is that we are honest and fair in doing our jobs.
Are there any young players that have caught your eye recently?
There are a lot of good players who are knocking on the door. The likes of Manoj Tiwari, Cheteshwar Pujara, M Vijay are all extremely talented players. It bodes well for the future of Indian cricket to have players performing well in domestic cricket. A lot of emphasis is being laid on how a player performs in domestic cricket, and it’s extremely important for youngsters to carry on doing well in the domestic circuit.
What do you think of Mahendra Singh Dhoni as captain?
Dhoni is someone who thinks from his heart and isn’t afraid to take tough decisions, which is important for a captain. The team has done well under him.
What role do you see Sachin Tendulkar playing in this transition phase?
Sachin has been phenomenal for Indian cricket. To perform at the highest level, for so long, is brilliant. It’s essential for Sachin to be around as he is not only someone who is an asset on the field but he is a great team player.