THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING ASHWIN

I told you so! They will not pick him, even on a wicket that traditionally spins. What was most disappointing was the explanation Kohli gave, at the toss, that he thinks Jadeja has a better chance of getting rid of 4 left handers in the English line-up, because he can make use of the rough created by the pacers. Well, one left hander is gone, one is James Anderson, a rabbit - so we will see. Strange for a captain to repose faith in a player who has all of two wickets from three tests in the current series and the best spin bowler in the world.

I don’t care whether India win or lose the fourth test. My limited point that there are other considerations in choosing the playing 11 is now becoming clear. More writers are now questioning the team selection. One of them hints that BCCI is not happy with Ashwin releasing vlogs on YouTube/ Instagram etc. This is strange – in the NFL (National Football League), arguably the league that has the most amount of money, once the teams shell out big bucks for the star players, they want them before, during and after a game, on TV and SM! Because that is how the ratings game in the US is played and that is how the owners recoup some of their investment.

So, for the BCCI to bench Ashwin for his videos is pathetic. Similarly, they managed to put a kibosh on his wife Preethi’s Twitter account, where she has now made it a closed group – in other words, you have to ask before being allowed to follow her timeline.

I do not know any Cricket player, having lived in the US for decades – I hold no brief for anyone in the team. The last time I watched a cricket match live was about thirty years ago. I do want the game to be played in the proper spirit, as a contest between bat and ball. And I want politics out of it. Let the ex-Cricket players administer the game in the different states and BCCI can be run like a public limited company with a P and L.

And I know that I am talking to deaf ears. BJP, the party with a difference, is doing the same thing that Congress did – so that is another disappointment. Cricket as a game is dying – long live Cricket!