CAB questions BCCI’s move to reschedule Ranji Trophy matches

While the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Senior Tournament Committee meeting in Mumbai where they will discuss the options for rescheduling two Ranji Trophy matches, the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) seems to be against the idea of rescheduling and joint secretary Avishek Dalmiya termed the decision “contrary to the principles of natural justice”.

Dalmiya in his letter to the BCCI president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke wrote: “During the course of the meeting of the representatives of the affiliated full members of BCCI at New Delhi on December2 to discuss matters pertaining to the Hon’ble Supreme Court, State Associations and Hon’ble Lodha Committee and its other related matters, an outside issue related to the rescheduled Ranji Trophy match between Bengal and Gujarat which was decided and communicated by the Board of Control for Cricket in India to be played from 15th to 18th of December was raised on behalf of the MCA, duly supported by the TNCA, that each team should have been awarded a point each and rescheduling of the match was incorrect.

“With reference to above, we would like to categorically state as under with sincere expectation that the decision taken by BCCI based on supervening, extraordinary, unavoidable, dangerous condition be not reviewed, as otherwise the same would be not merely unfair but also contrary to regulatory provisions of the BCCI and the principles of natural justice.”

The decision by the BCCI Technical Committee to reschedule the 5th round matches of the Ranji Trophy between Gujarat and Bengal, Hyderabad and Tripura. The round 5 matches were abandoned after the match referee decided to do so because of immense layer of smog and pollution in New Delhi at that time. The Technical Committee decided to reschedule the matches originally played from November 5 to December 15 and moved the venue to Visakhapatnam and Kolkata.

It was not received well by the associations and the MCA, TNCA and Haryana Cricket Association objected against it during the meeting on December 2. They also questioned match referees – P Ranganathan decision for the Gujarat-Bengal game and Sanjay Sharma for the Hyderabad v Tripura game to abandon the matches after first two days.

Commenting on the issue Shirke said, “We are going to have a full, detailed inquiry of this. The whole problem has come because the match referees didn’t wait to go into Day Three and Day Four,” Shirke had said.

Dalmiya’s letter also mentioned Clause 3.5.3 of the (BCCI) Playing Conditions for Multi-Day Matches. “(It) expressly stipulates, amongst others, that if the situation is so bad that there is obvious and foreseeable risk to the safety of player and would be unreasonable or dangerous for play to take place warranting immediate suspension/abandonment, the Umpires in consultation with the Match Referee, may not allow the play to ‘commence’. The joint decisions of the Umpire and Match Referee to abandon the Match without a ‘ball’ being bowled were taken based on unprecedented air pollution then prevailing in Delhi, risking life and safety of everyone,”

The CAB also specified that as per the rule, the Technical Committee has the “power and authority” to deal with only extraordinary situations and “not directly conceived in playing conditions”.

“If the powers entrusted to the Tournament Committee under the (BCCI) Constitution are read in consonance with the powers of the Technical Committee, it would be amply clear that Tournament Committee in the particular unforeseen circumstances cannot exercise power, authority or jurisdiction,” the letter said.

As per the BCCI Constitution, the Technical Committee’s role is defined as: “The Committee shall consider the Laws of the game and amendments thereto…” According to a senior cricket board official, once a tournament starts, “the Senior Tournament Committee is authorised to resolve any disputes and the decision is binding”.

Another aspect worth notice is that it is CAB president Sourav Ganguly who chairs the Technical Committee.