Anurag Thakur made it clear that his priority in the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was cricket and its fans. He promised to make domestic cricket more meaningful and the game and its venues comfortably accessible to the fans.
“The (IPL) fan parks have proved a big hit. The responsibility will be with the State associations but the Board can have a central policy on making cricket-watching a pleasant experience, from buying tickets to spending time inside the stadium.
“Easy entry to the venue is a big challenge at all venues, essentially because of the local police and the barricades needed for security purpose.
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“We can't make a compromise on the security aspect but we need to have better co-ordination,” he said here on Monday in an interaction with
The Board was concerned at the dwindling spectator presence at Test matches and domestic cricket.
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“It is a challenge to get crowds for Test matches,” conceded Thakur. “We do realise that fans are the foundation of Indian cricket.
“We want to work in the interest of Indian cricket too and need fan support for it. Soon, every venue will develop areas marked for differently-abled spectators. Cricket viewing will become a pleasant exercise.”
According to Thakur, the Board will invite suggestions from former Test players Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, V.V.S. Laxman and Ravi Shastri to pick the next coach.
“We want India to improve its record overseas and I am sure these wise minds will have a way forward.
“It does not matter if the coach is an Indian or foreigner. We want a coach who can take the team forward. I must say that Ravi Shastri did a superb job as Team Director.”
On the reported move to remove N. Srinivasan as BCCI representative in the ICC (International Cricket Council), Thakur said, “We are not doing any witch-hunting. The Board will decide if Srinivasan is wrong or not. We will not hesitate to take action against anyone who is guilty.”
Foreign toursThakur promised to revive foreign tours for the junior India teams and India ‘A’ as was the practice in the past. “We need to have strong bench strength.
“There is a suggestion to introduce a rotation policy which would allow some of the stars to play domestic cricket. We would allow cricketers to play in English county cricket in July-August.”
Bouncy pitches, and not just green tops, would be developed. “We are tying up with Cricket Australia for exchange of coaches and technical staff.
“Indian umpires also receive guidance from Simon Taufel (Australia). We will have courses for curators too. The focus will be on result-oriented domestic cricket so that interest in the game increases.”
The BCCI secretary promised to give more importance to women’s cricket. “This is one area that has been ignored for some time now. In the IPL we now have women commentators. It is time we gave our women cricketers the recognition they deserve.”
Thakur also promised to make the BCCI’s functioning more transparent. “We have nothing to hide. Cricket is in a healthy state. It creates employment for many.”
He concluded by declaring that the gag orders on players and coaches would also be removed.