Roger Binny’s maiden India cap was handed over by M. Chinnaswamy, the former Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president, who was the last to represent Karnataka in the hot seat.
The 1983 World Cup-winning star himself recollected this incident on assuming charge as BCCI boss from Sourav Ganguly at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel on Tuesday afternoon.
Binny is aware that he faces a huge task in his bid to take Indian cricket forward. The Telegraph lists his priorities and how he plans to work on them:
⚫ Fitness of players: The new president seems to be very worried about the fitness of the players, especially the fast bowlers.
“I want to focus on the aspect of prevention of injuries to the players. Jasprit Bumrah got injured just before the World Cup, which spoils the whole purpose,” Binny said on Tuesday. “You can’t have your premier fast bowler out in such an important tournament.
“We have to sit down and chalk out how this can be prevented. We have to speak to the trainers, physios, the coaches at the National Cricket Academy and the Indian team management and get to the root of the problem. If needed we need to get the best in the business from overseas,” he said.
Some questions have been raised about whether the likes of Bumrah and Deepak Chahar were rushed into play after completing their rehab. “We have to work out a plan and improve players’ fitness,” Binny stressed.
⚫ Workload management: With so much of cricket being played, Binny understands the importance of managing the players’ workload.
It’s still early days but he didn’t rule out having three teams for the different formats with separate captains. “We have to sit with the team management and discuss these issues,” he said.
⚫ Pitches: The for mer all-rounder also stressed on the need to have uniform wickets in domestic cricket which would allow players to adjust easily on overseas tours.
“I want to focus on the pitches at home... The wickets in India should be lively so when we go overseas, it helps our players. There is no problem in getting used to the conditions,” Binny said.
“Ideally wickets in domestic cricket should be uniform and offer equal assistance to batters and bowlers. Players struggle with the bounce and life in the wicket overseas and we need to make their task easier,” he felt.
⚫ Setting up of the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC): With Madan Lal having been disqualified as chairman of the CAC, having attained 70 years of age, the Board will have to appoint a new member to the panel. That will pave the way for naming a new selector from the West, a post that has been lying vacant for a year, and others whose terms have ended.
This CAC is expected to take shape during its first apex council meeting.
⚫ Women’s IPL: The Women’s IPL will begin in March next year with five teams, the auction dates for which will be finalised shortly. It was learnt that none of the existing 10 IPL franchises will enjoy any advantage in the bidding process.
⚫ Contracts for domestic players: This has been a controversial topic since outgoing president Sourav’s failure to deliver on his promise. But Binny said he will go about fulfilling this in a cautious manner. “We will speak to the state associations before taking a decision. A few associations already have it in place for their players,” he told The Telegraph.
⚫ Stadium infrastructure: Improving stadium infrastructure and making it more spectator-friendly will be his priority. The AGM has decided to form a committee on this.
