Vision Statement for Indian Cricket

Zonal bias is perceived to be one of the greatest evils of the selection process today. Whether such bias exists and if so, to what degree, is moot. The BCCI however recognises that it is imperative to avoid even the appearance of bias.

That is not possible under the present system, where selectors represent zonal interests. Therefore, the five-member selection panel will be immediately disbanded.

In its place will be installed a pyramidal structure, which will have the same constitution at all levels, from the bottom (the state) up.

Each selection committee - state, and central -- will comprise three full-time professional selectors, aided by the captain and coach who will have full voting powers.

This is how it will work: Selectors at the state level, in the various age groups, will be required to attend all cricket matches in that age group, and maintain exhaustive dossiers on the players concerned. These dossiers will be part of a national pool, for the board and the selectors at any level to consult at all times.

State-level selectors will be responsible for selecting the state teams. They will attend all matches of the team at the state level, and will at the end of each fixture, provide exhaustive data about each player to the national selectors.

The national selectors in turn will go through this data, identify players of potential, and travel to watch them play, adding their own observations to that of the state selectors. These inputs, plus further inputs on the alumni of the national cricket academy, will then be used by the national selectors, in tandem with the captain and coach, to select not only the national and national A sides, but to identify reserves for the various positions. The names of these reserves will be passed on to the national cricket academy, which will be asked to ensure that the skills of these cricketers are polished to match-fitness, ensuring that there is always a second, and third, string to every cricketing bow in the Indian team.

BACK  | NEXT