The DDCA president Arun Jaitley has agreed to most of the suggestions placed before him by Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir aimed at bringing in transparency in selection matters.
The two cricketers, along with former captain Mansur Ali Khan of Pataudi, met Mr. Jaitley and other senior functionaries of the DDCA here on Monday.
Mr. Jaitely had invited Sehwag for a meeting following reports that he and some of the other leading cricketers from the Capital were contemplating representing another State this season should the appalling situation in the DDCA continue.
Appreciated
Addressing mediapersons at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground here on Tuesday, Mr. Jaitley described the meeting with the players as not adversarial and appreciated the dignified manner in which the players had put up their case.
The suggestions of the players were well intended and my colleagues took it in a statesmanlike manner.
It is learnt that Mr. Jaitley will look into the possibility of forming a five-member cricket committee that will appoint selectors, coaches and prepare a blueprint to improve Delhis cricket at all levels. The committee will also report directly to Mr. Jaitley.
If Mr. Mansur Ali Khan of Pataudi can agree to our request to be on this committee, well be very happy, said Mr. Jaitley.
He added, we are looking for people with unquestionable integrity. He maintained, The principal concern is that steps are needed to ensure absolutely fair process in selecting players.
Senior selectors
Similarly, plans are afoot to have senior selectors who have either played for the country or played a minimum of 50 first class matches. To be eligible to be part of the junior selection committee, a cricketer should have played a minimum of 25 first-class matches.
The tenure of the selectors/coaches will be increased to two years. We are looking for selectors with high level of ethics and integrity, with a firm spine, he said.
Mr. Jaitley also mentioned the possibility of Delhi holding a tournament of three-day games before the start of the season. Mr. Sunil Dev (Sports Secretary) has agreed to provide the structure for such a tournament, he said and continued, it was also suggested that performances in some of the recognized local tournaments be considered while selecting players for the Ranji team.
Similarly, a couple of leading local tournaments in each age-group are expected to be considered to promote junior cricket.
It is also learnt that beginning this Ranji Trophy season, the Delhi coach, the captain, curator at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground, and the chairman of selectors will meet to chalk out the teams strategy regarding the preparation of the pitches so that the team enjoys home advantage.
In another welcome move, all former India players and those with a minimum of 50 first-class matches behind them will be invited to all matches held at the Kotla.
The annual awards function, from now on, will be handled by the Executive Committee and not the Sports Committee.
