“It’s a very sad day for cricket. The prestige of BCCI has been brought down to its lowest level,” says A.C. Muthiah, former president, BCCI. He was responding to a request for an interview which he had been steadfast in refusing in the past on the grounds that he had retired from public life and also because he was no more involved with the game of cricket.
Seeing the plight of cricket today with the image of the IPL torn to shreds, Muthiah spoke up pointing out how he had pointed out the conflict of interest at the very beginning when the IPL was formed.
Muthiah had taken the matter right up to the Supreme Court but a split verdict from a two-judge bench meant that the status quo was upheld and N. Srinivasan remains BCCI president as long as no order is forthcoming from the apex court to displace him on the grounds of conflict of interest. The matter is expected to come up again in the court very soon, perhaps as soon as the court reopens.
“If you are an interested party, how can you take bold decisions? This is why I said there should be no conflict of interest. When I was the board president I could take a bold decision on Azharuddin and others when the betting scandal first came up. I acted on the evidence placed before me then and I could act firmly and fairly. Can anybody who is in a conflict of interest situation take a fair decision based on merits?” Muthiah asked.
Muthiah would like to see the IPL being delinked from the cricket board.
“It’s a commercial venture and should be run by a private body with due revenues to BCCI.”
But what about saving the game from fixers? How would he proceed were he still involved with the game. “I would like all players to take an oath that they would not do anything to betray the spirit of cricket and that they would not bet or indulge in any malpractices. It’s impossible to police every player. We have to trust them but make them promise on God that they will not cheat,” he said.
“Money should not determine everything. It may come and go but honour is everything in sport. I was told of a time when there was no money in the cricket board. I remember Pataudi coming and telling me personally how my father (MA Chidambaram, president and long-time treasurer of BCCI) and Fatehsinghrao Gaekwad were responsible for players travelling by air.
“Till then the Indian team used to travel third class by train. That was where the BCCI came from and let us not forget that today when everyone is a millionaire.”