Troubles continue to dog an already troubled Munaf Patel, the tearaway fast bowler, who is trying to make a comeback into the Indian team.
Munaf, who has already lost his place in the Indian team earlier for hiding his injury and then for his alleged lack of fitness, courted a seemingly minor controversy on Friday at the Sardar Patel Gujarat Stadium in Ahmedabad just before the beginning of the India Green versus India Red match in the ongoing NKP Salve Trophy day-night Challenger Series.
Soon after he arrived at the ground with the rest of India Green players, Munaf straightaway went to inspect the pitch around 1pm local time while his teammates busied themselves in the nets near the boundary. Being a bowler, he was naturally curious to look for himself how the pitch was prepared for the match. But to his embarrassment, even anger as it was apparent to all those standing near the boundary, he encountered match referee B Raghunath from Karnataka, who was already taking a close look at the wicket himself.
The moment Raghunath saw Munaf near the wicket, he told him not to stand there and trample on it and to go back and join his teammates. Munaf, who was wearing spikes, was probably unaware of the rule that prevents any member of the two playing teams save the captains from inspecting the pitch on the match day. So he started arguing with the match referee and seemed not to move from there. But for the India Green local coach-cum-manager Vijay Patel's timely intervention, and persuading Munaf to leave the spot, the situation could have worsened. But even when he returned and joined his teammates in the nets, Munaf was seen uttering a few words.
Raghunath immediately held a meeting with the two umpires and a couple of Gujarat Cricket Association officials.
"Nothing has happened. I don't want to spoil anyone's career" was all he said when approached for his comments.
A few minutes later, Raghunath was heard saying: "I'll report the matter to the BCCI", when the chairman of selectors Dilip Vengsarkar asked him what had happened. Soon the two started discussing the "matter" outside the players' dressing room. The other four selectors, Venkatapathy Raju, Ranjit Biswal, Bhupinder Singh and Sanjay Jagadale, were also around them.
However, Vijay Patel tried to play down the issue.
"Munaf just went to see the wicket. The match referee, who was already there, didn't allow him to do so. So I took him to the nets from there. It's not an issue," he told rediff.com.
Asked for his comments when he was returning to the pavilion after the nets just before the two captains went out for the toss, Munaf told rediff.com with a touch of sarcasm: "I didn't go there to look at the wicket. Only the captain can inspect the wicket. It's the rule."
