Test squad for Australia series - leaves a lot to be desired

The Test team for Australia series has been announced. Looks like another round of patchy and predictable work by the selectors.....

They rightly dropped Gambhir after giving an undeservedly long rope to him. Credit is due to them for taking this much awaited decision - albeit a highly delayed one. Gambhir has 360 runs at an average of 30 in his last 12 Test innings with zero century and just two fifties to his name. Sehwag has 450 runs in his last 12 Test innings at an average of 37 with one hundred and only one fifty to his name. BCCI's current favourite - Ashwin has 14 wickets in his last 8 Test innings with a best of 3 for 80. Ishant has 18 wickets in his last 18 Test innings with a best of 3 for 49. Both of them have to really step up against the likes of Clarke, Warner, Watson, etc. if they have to go to South Africa after this home series. By the way, the next four Test series of India are on foreign soil.

For want of credible options, Harbhajan looks the best bet to either replace Ashwin or join him in the team as the other spin option? Even today, he appears to be a more skillful off-spinner than Ashwin. Bhajji has the guile, the skill and the experience to exploit any pitch condition and he is certainly not a spent force...no way. In the recent Irani Cup, Bhajji appeared to be regaining his rhythm, confidence and form for which he is known for. Hope Bhajji gets back to his menacing best by Feb22nd to trouble Clarke and his boys. India needs Bhajji – the fighter, to fire full throttle against the Aussies.

Murali Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan - the two who got the nod ahead of Jaffer, simply seem to have got lucky. How about taking a look at the consistency and first class (akin to Tests) performance of these three claimants during 2012-13 season to back their claims for the Test opener spot. Jaffer made 1016 runs in 13 innings (80, 19, 79, 71, 18, 67, 171, 150, 33, 15, 132, 80 and 101*) with 3 centuries and 5 half centuries at a fantastic average of 85. In comparison, M.Vijay has 289 runs in 10 innings (15, 0, 17, 3, 13, 42, 24, 24, 116 and 35) with one century and no half century at a dismal average of 29 and Shikhar Dhawan has 524 runs in 13 innings (22, 55, 30, 104, 8, 32, 38, 13, 13, 116, 30, 63 and 0) with one century and one fifty at an average of 44. The fact of the matter lies in the performance and abilities gap between Jaffer and the next best option - Dhawan towards the Test opener slot. Clearly, this also speaks about the lack of young quality players in the talent pool/pipeline.

Jaffer - with his class, temperament, commitment and this year’s performance backing him up would have simply walked into the India Test XI. The solidity and stability that Jaffer would have provided at the top of the order is not an option available with either M.Vijay or Shikhar Dhawan. Lo and behold, selectors had the audacity to leave him out, one more time. It was time they had done justice to his talent, class, commitment and hard work. Wish they hadn’t ignored atleast his last few innings - especially the two Irani Cup innings and the one in Ranji Final. For sure, he has looked in total command over his art/game during the last few years. Yes, at 35, he is in the same age bracket of Sehwag and five years younger than the genius - SRT himself. But what has age got to do with it,so long,one can deliver at the highest level. Jack Hobbs made 100+ first class centuries after his 40th birthday. Of course, that was another era and a different time altogether.

Hope and pray the selected openers -Vijay and Dhawan, get lucky against the likes of Siddle, Starc and Johnson and do well Down Under. And, then, these openers and the Team faces the troika of Steyn, Morkel and Philander in South Africa, on their tracks. Hope the selectors kept all of this in mind before giving nod to these two gentlemen.

Rahane - with sound technique and temperament, has rightly been picked for his prolific record in domestic cricket, He surely deserves a look in at No.6 in Tests. For that matter, S.Badrinath and Md.Kaif - who have been waiting in the wings for long, and are the other perennial contenders  – if at all Rahane doesn’t click on the tour, for some reason. However, team management must place full confidence in Rahane, He deserves an extended run there to prove his credentials. In any case, Aussie bowlers will make sure Rahane is tested to the hilt and he will be baptised by fire. Hope he delivers up to his talent and promise. This would also open up the options  - in likelihood of the Master deciding to retire from Tests in near future.

Raina - not picked for the Test team, looks a right decision. He is a proven ODI and T20 performer. But he is yet not there as far as Tests are concerned, especially when the opposition is the level of Australian pace battery and when the next Test opposition is of the quality of South African fast  bowlers on their own pitches.

Bhuvanesh Kumar has been a revelation in ODIs and the renowned art of swing bowling is back in reckoning because of him. Hope he will continue his superb form in Tests and will surprise the quality Aussie batting line up. He surely deserved a Test cap and a decent run there.

Ravindra Jadeja, albeit a certainty in ODIs, didn’t merit a place in the Test team. He doesn’t appear to have the technique, skill and class for a Test No.6 batsman and especially when India has some far more skillful and better equipped options - sitting on the fringes of Indian Team. As a left arm bowling option, I would always prefer a pure specialist (Bhajji or Ojha) in Tests in place of a part-timer Jadeja. Justifying his inclusion in Test XI for team balance appears to be a bogey here. Jadeja - for his accuracy, suits the shorter formats and his place is there. Wonder what extra consideration made the selectors choose him ahead of some better options. Ojha - the highest wicket taker of recent England series certainly merits a place in the Test XI - at least on the dust bowl domestic tracks.

Struggling Ashwin and Ishant are the other two names who once again find themselves lucky. Ashwin needed to go back to domestic cricket to enhance his skills, develop the right line and some variety and improve his fitness. International batsmen appear to have gotten used to his predictable pause before bowling and also to his carrom ball. Without the help of a crumbling, dusty, turning Indian tracks, Ashwin looks a Ranji level offie. Unless Ashwin improves his off stump line and required guile in his armoury, he also won't have the desired success on tracks abroad. Having said that, luck may still smile on both Jadeja and Ashwin and they may find themselves amongst some wickets on our unprepared, turning, helpful, dust bowl tracks but will that be a long term stable solution to the team's spin problems at hand.

Ishant on the other hand, despite having the talent, the speed and ample chances in all formats of the game doesn't seem to have grown enough as a bowler. Lack of consistency, variation, discipline, and dependability remain perennial issues with him. And this is all Ishant has delivered thus far with solid 45+ Tests behind him till date. He, again, has been simply lucky to have gotten these number of chances - be it on account of injury issues to other pacers or due to lack of enough talent in the pool. But this cannot go on forever. Ishant would have to get his acts together and raise his bar or else the clamour for his ouster is bound to grow louder. He will surely do himself  a favour by taking the Ashwin prescription, soon.

Ashok Dinda’s name - ahead of Sreesanth and Shami Ahmed, was somewhat surprising. With Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron and Irfan Pathan in the current injured list, options for selectors were limited though. However, Sreesanth, despite his no-balls and  inconsistencies, has some wicket taking ability and that could have been a plus for the side in case Ishant failed in the first Test. Shami, with his disciplined pace in the range of 135-140 kmph and with a decent performance (in the recent ODI series against England) backing him up, could also have been a better option than Dinda.

And no Ishwar Pandey in the team?? He looks an outstanding and genuine talent. Natural clean action, ability to make good use of his height and more importantly, the ability to swing both ways along with good control over line and length catapulted him to this season’s highest wicket taker in Ranji Trophy. A stint with national Test team would have done wonders for his confidence, exposure and learning. However, he has time and will get his chances. Pandey would do no harm to his deeds if he adds a few yards to his pace and the rest should follow. Hope he is nurtured well and taken care of by BCCI.

Following the norm of mediocrity in India's cricketing selection matters, yet again, a number of questionable decisions defying rationale can, therefore, be clearly seen in the mix picked for upcoming Test series. Overall, this was a very average job by the Selectors. The forthcoming series provided a great opportunity for selectors to plug in the gaps and bring in the desired balance. Ignoring the present, one just can't have an eye on future all the time. One has to have an eye on the present too to achieve that right balance. This could have been achieved by allowing a mix of experienced seniors and a bunch of youngsters some good  time on the field and a chance to be amongst some wickets and runs, before they left for South African shores. Hope better sense and strategy prevails while selecting the Team for the last two Tests of the Aussie series.The yardstick of selectors for doing a good job at it is not in the naming of absolute certainties - as those names select themselves, but in selecting the replacements and the fringe players. The right mix of experience and youth and the optimal balance can only be arrived if one has an eye on both the present and the future.

Footnote:

Shikhar Dhawan – based on his temperament, first class numbers and current form, definitely merits a look in at the top of the order in ODIs and T20s - in place of Sehwag. Ambati Rayudu - for his hard work and potential, deserves a chance in ODIs and T20 teams. Rayudu appears to have the right attitude and looks ready for the shorter versions. Manoj Tiwary is another one who (if fit) deserves a longer run in the ODI and T20 squads. Ishwar Pandey - for his sheer talent and potential, may also be given a chance in ODIs, sooner than later. International exposure will provide him a world of confidence and a great learning experience.

The Fix for Indian Cricket - Answers lie within

The reality check…

With greats like Dravid and Laxman now gone, genius Sachin on his way out and talented but fading Zaheer almost at the end of his career, BCCI and its zone based selectors have an enormous task at their hands to continue replenishing Team India with appropriate talent in all three formats of the game. Their immediate job at hand is to arrest the decline and make renewed efforts towards a quick turnaround in the Team’s fortunes which could be sustained over time. Glaring non-performance of some of the seniors / front line players over a long period of time and selectors blatantly looking the other way despite continued Test defeats - both abroad and at home, have further compounded the problems. Besides this, a number of other unanswered questions on account of systemic and symptomatic issues, mismanagement and ‘chalta hai’ attitude within the guarded BCCI system - remain to be firmly dealt with and addressed. More importantly, in recent times, BCCI’s incoherent approach, apathy and 'care a damn' attitude towards finding credible transparent solutions to its chronic problems has certainly left a lot to be desired. No wonder, BCCI's affairs have left cricket lovers and followers around the country and the world - simply baffled, to say the least.

For instance, Gambhir has 225 runs in his last 9 ODI innings at a dismal average of 25 with just two fifties. He has 360 runs at an average of 30 in his last 12 Test innings with zero century and just two fifties to his name. He really has had a long rope and his place in the team is untenable and cannot be justified by any means.

Sehwag has 248 runs in his last 11 ODI innings at a miserable average of 22 with just one fifty to his name. He has 450 runs in his last 12 Test innings at an average of 37 with one hundred and only one fifty to his name. His talent is undeniable and his Test record is unenviable and fantastic. Being a senior batsman at the top of the order, Sehwag  needs to play responsibly and cannot take his position in the Test team for granted any more.

Sachin has 221 runs in his last 13 Test innings with no century and just one fifty against his name. This stands nowhere in comparison to the glorious record of this most prolific and complete batsman of all time. The Master Blaster says he will continue to play until he enjoys the game. Well, thanks a lot Master for all your superlative contributions until now but then how about shoring up the Team’s sinking fortunes from here on? Who else should be doing it if not you the Champion? Else, it's time to perhaps make way and walk down the sunset gracefully.

Zaheer has 12 wickets in his last 11 Test innings with not even one three wicket haul to his name and has only 15 wickets in his last 12 ODIs with a best of 2 for 39. Unless he sheds his extra kilos, gets back into shape  with required fitness, gets his rhythm back and gains some extra yards in his bowling, the road is almost ending for him now.

Dhoni's favourite - Ashwin has 14 wickets in his last 8 Test innings with a best of 3 for 80 and has 24 wickets in his last 20 ODI innings at a very poor economy rate in both formats of the game. His best figures have been 3 for 39 over all these innings. It appears, his limited skills finally stand exposed at the highest level and international batsmen seem to have almost sorted him out. Unless Ashwin - who, seems to have a sharp mind over his shoulders, quickly develops better bowling discipline, adds the required variations and wily deceptions in his skills armoury, starts attacking off stump line more often, and improves his fitness and fielding, his place in Team India could be in seriously threat soon. Ashwin needs to quickly learn to take wickets on batsmen friendly tracks - especially on tracks abroad. He shows glimpses of some technique in his batting too. If he could work on his batting and start chipping in with some valuable runs in the lower order he could serve the Team and his place in the Team, well. Else, his international career could be marred sooner than later. Perhaps, going back to basics and a rigorous stint in domestic cricket and help from likes of Erapalli Prasanna could help him iron out the deficiencies and help him build the required skill set armoury.

Ishant has 18 wickets in his last 18 Test innings with a best of 3 for 49 and has only 21 wickets in his last 17 ODI innings with a best of 3 for 34. The talent is there but the application and growth as a bowler has, sadly, been lacking. Ishant has not improved as a bowler as he should have been. And he has been super lucky - given the number of chances he has got which normally have not been afforded to others in the recent past. Ishant also needs to go back to domestic cricket and get his act together.

Let’s accept it…

It is one thing to hit the peak of ICC rankings and it is another to hold on to that position over an extended period over time. The bad news is that from the No.1 Test team in the world not very long ago, Team India is now struggling to regain its No.5 position. The Team seems to have completely lost its bearing since it lost the Test series Down Under and has continued to suffer losses since then - one after the other including the recently concluded home series against England. The good news is that Team India has just scaled the No.1 ODI spot in ICC rankings - riding on the back to back wins in the two ODIs against a severely depleted England team which didn’t have the likes of Jimmy Anderson or a Graeme Swann or a Stuart Broad or a Jonathan Trott or even a Monty Panesar. And then it went back to its losing ways by ceding the last ODI of  the Series back to England.

It would be interesting to find out how long Team India will be able to hold on to its No.1 ODI ranking. As things stand today, it is unlikely that the Team will be able to hold on to it for long. No, this is not a cynical or pessimistic view. Rather, it is an objective assessment. The reasons are clear albeit a little complex. Woeful form of openers, serious issues in bowling department (both pace and spin), inexperience of younger batsmen, technical deficiencies, fitness and injury issues, not playing to one’s potential, rivalries and tension within the Team, ignoring of non-performance by BCCI selectors, non-availability of ready talent as replacements, etc. haven’t helped the situation. Quite frankly, the Team in its present composition, simply doesn’t have the wherewithal to be the No.1 team in the world on a consistent basis in any of the three formats. It will be of interest to watch how long Team India is able to retain the top spot in ODI format - albeit every Indian cricket fan hopes and prays that it does. Perhaps, the T20 Team, at best, could languish at No.3 in rankings provided it doesn’t slip down any further from here.

Rankings aside, under the current scheme of things at BCCI, Team India clearly seems to be suffering from a combination of shortsighted view, lack of vision, tokenism and ad-hoc decision making. Some chronic and glaring ills have gone untreated or have been arrogantly ignored by BCCI for long. It is one thing to commercialise the game, spread its popularity across the country and beyond its borders, rake in the resulting mullah in millions of dollars from broadcasting rights and sponsorships, and build the world’s richest cricket body out of BCCI (all of this looks great by the way and credit must be given to BCCI where it is due) but it is another to establish a (talent) harnessing, thriving, sustainable, robust, fair, transparent and accountable cricketing structure across the length and breadth of the country. It is one thing to build a billion dollar brand like IPL out of exhibitionist T20 games but is another to credibly and professionally manage cricket affairs with a long term vision and thereby achieve consistent high class results and success in international cricketing arena. No commercial success in sport is worth its import unless there is a robust structure, established processes and a professional organization in place to spot, nurture and develop talent to feed and complement the popular commercialization of sport in an optimal, transparent and efficient way. What a shame that India today has more than 40+ stadiums (which is fantastic by any standards) for hosting international matches - perhaps the most in the world and also boasts of world's richest cricketing body but has never held the top Test or ODI ranking beyond a few months despite the riches and a potential talent pool of hundreds of thousands. Team India lost its top Test ranking in just a matter of few months in 2012. The reasons were pretty apparent.

Elements of hard work, equal opportunity, competition, fairness, integrity, recognition/reward against performance, professionalism and a passionate national spirit form the core principles and ethos of any national sports body. BCCI - the nation’s apex cricketing body still doesn’t spell out a compelling vision, or a clear stated purpose, or well defined time-bound achievable goals along with a sound and holistic execution plan with defined time bound milestones - to develop and promote cricket across the country keeping regional balance in mind. People at the helms in the Board don't yet appear to come to terms with understanding and acceptance of the present systemic ills and gaps which ail their organization and which drag down Indian cricket every now and then. The much needed robust, multi-tiered, functional and accountable cricketing structure, transparent and responsible governance mechanism and professional management of the same - hierarchically spread across cities, towns and districts, continue to be talked about in circles and circles but don’t ever see the light of the day. BCCI enjoys unbelievable resources, autonomy, functional independence, resourcefulness and clout at its command. Its continued apathy and its unwillingness to move away from chalta-hai approach, tokenism and ad-hocism and its inability to fix long standing critical cricketing issues towards carving out a well-oiled cricketing apparatus that this country needs, is frankly, a bit beyond comprehension.

BCCI’s actions over the last decade or so have more or less followed a very predictable path and the Board seems to be stuck in some kind of a time warp. The organization continues to function in an opaque and regressive fashion and continues to be run by a small but select coterie or nexus of well - connected politicians, bureaucrats and businessmen. The same names - Pawar, Bindra, Dalmia, Srinivasan, Muthaiah,  Scindia, Shukla, Sawant, Shetty, Shah, Amin, Shirke, Rungta, Manohar, Joshi, Jagdale, etc. continue to pop up again and again when we look at the top layer in BCCI. A select few of these gentlemen have continued to form the core of power centre for ages there. They and their friends continue to be at the helms at BCCI and at State Associations across the country despite serving several stints in multiple roles over the years / decades. Barring a few exceptions (Shivlal Yadav, Kumble, Brijesh Patel, Vengsarkar, Srinath, Gavaskar, Shastri, Chetan Chauhan, Ranjib Biswal, and a few others), there is hardly any international or Ranji player of repute serving in any important administrative capacity at BCCI or at any of the State Associations. Akin to many other national Sports Federations in this country, the same game of musical chair - in the garb of elections (every two-three years), continues to be played out amongst these select few and their cronies in BCCI as well. Majority of the serving office bearers may not have even played Zonal or State level cricket in their lives and that includes the current and few other Board Presidents of recent past. If one looks at the names of present BCCI office bearers, one will get to know what is being referred to out here. For instance, some of them are believed to have overt and covert stakeholder interests in IPL teams which clearly is a serious conflict of interest and a matter of gross impropriety and recklessness in these times. IPL - in its current avatar, has also brought some very pertinent issues to the fore in the way cricketing talent is being nurtured, developed and transformed and in the way cricketing calendar is organised vis-a-vis Team India's interests. Looking at several IPL versions held so far, it appears, this glorified club/exhibition cricketing event is designed and organised to completely serve commercial interests and obligations of BCCI which is fine and perhaps justified too, to an extent. Yes, in the bargain, domestic players - getting to play in the same team with big international stars and also getting a chance to make some good money, is also fine and acceptable. However, as far as serving and promoting clean classical professional cricket and nurturing and transforming cricketing talent across the country - geared towards serving long term interests of Team India and the sport overall, the IPL effort certainly leaves a lot to be desired. Serious allegations of money laundering, match fixing, cheating, favouritism, conflict of interest, etc. around IPL owners, players and some BCCI operatives continue to cloud this popular event.

The two cents prescription…

More importantly, MS Dhoni - with due regards to his achievements, has continued to fail as a Test skipper - looking woefully short of ideas in his last three Test series. He should be relinquished of Test captaincy and be left alone to perform as a wicket keeper batsman in Tests. There is no better Test keeper batsman on the horizon at the moment. No, it shouldn’t be Kohli or Pujara filling Dhoni's shoes as Test captain. Let them be free and focus on their batting and do their best in what they are best at. They have recently joined the Test team, so, let them bloom and plunder runs rather than be burdened by the pressures of captaincy. Either of them can be made vice-captains for another year or two. Both Kohli and Pujara look to have the leadership qualities in them but it is early days at the moment. By the way, Kohli is yet to sort out some of the technical glitches in his Test batting against the swinging stuff outside the off stump on lively foreign tracks or against the 140kmph+ short pitched stuff targeting the ribs on green tracks. Similarly, Pujara is yet to be tested abroad in similar questioning batting conditions in Tests.

An experienced senior batsman or bowler should be handed over the captaincy of Test team until the end of 2013 and the policy of appointing captain on series to series basis should be scrapped with. Appointing a senior player could be a stop gap or transitory arrangement - at least until the end of 2013 - mainly designed to provide the stability and experience in Dhoni’s absence. As an option, it could be Sehwag - if he still continues to be in the scheme of things of selectors for a year or so or it could be say Sachin – if he doesn’t plan to retire until the end of 2013. Else, if Sachin hangs up his boots, in the absence of  workable alternatives, somebody like Md.Kaif – an experienced, gritty customer, could be brought into the middle order (for  providing solidity and experience) and be given the Test captaincy as well. Australia did this recently with Graham Bailey for its T20 team – pulling him out of fringes and giving him the nod ahead of Watson and Warner. West Indies did the same with Darren Sammy and Pakistan did the same with Misbah-ul Haque - all with reasonable success. Kaif has the skills, the temperament and the experience to succeed in Tests and to take the Team along with him. As a batsman, Kaif has been consistently doing well in domestic cricket over the last four-five seasons. As captain of UP, Central Zone and earlier India U-19, his record has been fantastic. Kaif is still considered to be one of the fittest cricketers around in Indian cricket. His fielding prowess and energy on the field is still intact. He has been a team mate of a number of current players in the Test team and that should also hold him in good stead. And he is only 32. Batsmen are said to be at their peak when they are in their early 30s. No wonder Kaif for Tests has a solid backer in Anil Kumble - who understands a few things about Test cricket himself. Bringing in Kaif into the Test team is an option worth considering and taking a look at, for sure with either Kohli or Pujara as the vice captain..

However, Dhoni still looks irreplaceable as captain in shorter formats of the game. He should be allowed to continue at the helms in the two shorter versions until 2015 World Cup. Kohli or Raina be made his deputy for continuity, stability - allowing these two gentlemen the freedom to nurture and prepare the ODI and T20 teams of future. The time has arrived for appointing separate captains for longer and shorter versions of the game.

Although having a foreign coach has its own advantages, Team India’s Head Coach, ideally, should be a combination of local flavor (culture, language, etc.) with adequate international match experience. He should preferably be India born and should have played at least 25 Tests and/or 50 ODIs. He should preferably have coached or mentored a national team anywhere around the world, at least once. Having a foreign passport cannot, however, be held a disqualification by any means, towards the candidacy for Head Coach. It is critical that he must have proven successes in his past playing days and also in coaching assignments to be able to command the respect of international players. This thing is important. More importantly, the Coach must have proven and demonstrated communication, listening, analytical, inspiring and leadership skills, besides, having an eye for talent. For the national team, BCCI already has had batting, bowling and fitness coaches under the supervision of Head Coach, which is great, by the way. However, objective selection criterion for bowling, batting and fielding assignments must also be put in place in writing before hiring them. Measurable, quantifiable and qualitative, time-bound goals/targets (including developing credible talent pool) must be clearly identified and agreed by these Coaches in consultation with BCCI at the hiring stage itself. For State Coaches, the person must have played at least 50 first class or Level A matches. Hiring batting, bowling and fielding coaches for State teams wouldn’t be a bad idea either, provided Associations’ coffers  allow that. Similar selection criterion and measurable time bound goals must be put in place for these State level coaching assignments as well. Three year renewable contracts on yearly basis should be given to all these Coaches and renewability criterion / metrics - qualitative and quantifiable achievements against the mutually agreed targets set earlier, should be clearly pre-defined.

At least one annual Five day Test match tournament/s must be included into the domestic cricketing calendar and top senior state/regional/zonal teams should play in this BCCI run tournament/s. Five day Test match tournament/s should also be organized at U-22 as well. Women’s cricket should also get a five day Test match tournament. These domestic Test matches should be played on not only lively green tops and batsman friendly pitches but also on spinning tracks as well, allowing competitive flavor of all track conditions to players knocking on the doors of national team.Even in Ranji Trophy, each Team in league stages, must get to play matches on both green lively tracks and spin friendly dust bowls in equal number.

All State Associations must organize annual tournaments at U-14, U-16 and U-19 levels where district teams can participate. The State Association must also organize an inter-schools championship at the State level on an annual basis as a part of "catch them young" talent spotting and development program. This must become a regular feature in each State. The State Association and State selectors - across all age levels must systematically monitor and track performance and growth of  each standout performer and player having potential. This will be a great initiative to discover local talent early and at the right time. BCCI can provide financial assistance or arrange suitable corporate sponsorships just designed to hold these State level tournaments across the country. It would also be great if BCCI with the help of State Associations and Association of Indian universities, revives College and University cricket with the right amount of focus, commitment and visibility.  A supporting dedicated talent spotting, nurturing and development program - as a supplement to the College/University program, will go a long way in helping the national talent pool to grow.

Hiring of National selectors on regional/zonal basis must be done away with. Only three selectors should comprise the National selection panel. Selectors of National team/s must have a national perspective and must have played a minimum number of international – Test and ODI matches, say 10 Tests and 25 ODIs. All three of them could be either from just one Association or from three different ones. That shouldn’t matter. What should matter is their cricketing record, cricketing sense, calibre, clear understanding of the evolving game and its changing demands, commitment to sport besides an eye for talent, as the key parameters in their selection or appointment. All selectors – National or State should be paid suitably and they must be given the required independence, autonomy and freedom in their day to day functioning. Their tenure must be guaranteed for three years and they must not function at the pleasure of President or Secretary of BCCI or of State Associations, in any way. It is also important that these National selectors - who get handsomely paid now, are made accountable for their decisions to not only the Board/Associations but also to the cricket loving public of this country through an appropriate transparent mechanism. The same policy should be followed for appointment of State selectors and they should also be paid a decent honorarium. Here, instead of minimum number of international matches the criterion may include minimum number of domestic matches - say 50 Ranji or Level A ones. A pool of paid talent scouts/spotters in BCCI and State Associations must be an automatic part of the future cricketing structure which will not only support the State and National selectors but will also automatically feed the creation of overall talent pool. The paid spotters / talent hunters could comprise of a mix of retired international and/or domestic players and they woul dbe part of the "catch them young" talent spotting and development program.

Player selection must be driven by the needs of specific format of the game. Skill level suiting the format, consistency of past performances, potential to excel, temperament, fitness level,  and overall team balance should be the bedrock of selection process. The team’s interests are paramount. Players should not be selected based on reputation or on zonal considerations and the selection process must not be opaque. Specialist Test players should not be pushed into playing T20 and vice versa. Specialists should be separately selected for each format. Some overlapping would be an eventuality depending upon the natural talent and adaptability of individual players - say on lines of Australian cricket. The selection committee must be transparent in sharing their rationale and logic behind selecting or retaining player/players in the Team/s and they must be held accountable. Teams for a particular format should be selected purely based on the skill set, technique, temperament, performance, player’s suitability for the specific format, and player's role in the Team - irrespective of the reputation or region that one hails from. Same selection policy and composition should be adopted for Zonal, State, Junior categories and Women’s team selection.

There should be a transparent and objective criterion and system in place for continuous assessment of player's performance and also for sending the player/s back to NCA / domestic cricket for regaining form, technique correction and/or rehabilitation against injuries or fitness issues. Based on that objective criterion, after adequate number of chances, non-performers or unfit players must be dropped. No matter who the player is, it should not be left to the players (international or domestic) to assess their fitness by themselves as it, then, becomes a subjective process for obvious reasons. In fitness certification and recertification process, there should be a panel of fitness experts at NCA and at its regional centres who should be closely involved in the certification/recertification and rehabilitation process of players on an ongoing basis - following an objective laid out procedure on the lines of international fitness norms and protocol.

The National Cricket Academy should be revamped by giving it a solid skill development, training and talent nurturing orientation. This place must have batting, bowling, fielding, and fitness coaches along with other support staff besides the Director. All these coaches (except the fitness one) must have played international cricket – a certain number of Tests and/or ODIs. The entire focus of this institution should be to specifically fine tune and polish the skills of identified and shortlisted promising and talented domestic players and to develop them into potential international performers. NCA must start performing like an engine which produces and feeds the National teams in all three formats of the game. It makes sense to develop five regional Academies - run by BCCI on the lines of NCA and under the umbrella of NCA. These five Academies would serve as nurturer and feeder agencies in each of these five regions. Fitness criterion should be in built as a key element in all programs and selection process of NCA.

Adequate emphasis should be given to Test cricket by keeping a minimum number of international and domestic matches in the mix for the calendar year. Annual cricket calendar should also be drawn in such a way to allow international players play a mandatory minimum number of domestic Ranji/Duleep/Deodhar Trophy matches allowing and enabling exposure for domestic players especially in longer format of domestic cricket - Ranji Trophy.

Cricket structure at State level must be reorganized to allow professional management and seamless utilization of services of former international and domestic cricketers. The structure and process for administering and development of cricket should be uniform across the country and should not be Association or individual specific. The cricketing system should allow automatic and periodic search of quality and talented young cricketers, should execute a robust talent development and management program enabling budding talents to bloom. Skills development, professional approach, discipline, rigorous fitness regime, performance orientation, transparency and fairness should be the bedrock of all such programs and systems.

As a matter of national pitch policy, each State Association must prepare adequate number of lively green and sporting pitches besides spin and batsman friendly tracks. Domestic championships at both senior and junior levels (e.g. Ranji, Duleep, Challenger, Cooch Behar, Vizzy, etc.) must be played by scheduling equal matches on nuetral, lively pace friendly tracks, spin friendly tracks and on dead and docile batsmen friendly pitches. This will allow both bowlers and batsmen have a level playing field and help them hone their skills in all kinds of cricketing conditions , through the cricketing seasons. BCCI must provide adequate financial and technical help to the Associations in enabling design and development of such pitches and program.

With BCCI’s help, several international stadiums with good infrastructure have come up across the country like Ranchi, Raipur, Dharamshala, Rajkot, Kochi, Pune, etc. In a year, these stadiums will hardly host two or three international matches at the most. For the rest of the year, the stadiums and its cricketing infrastructure could very well be used for training of youngsters, coaching and fitness camps, running regional or State Cricket Academies, hosting Ranji and other BCCI matches, hosting regional U-22/U-19/U-16 and Women’s’ tournaments and so on and so forth. After all, each Association gets Rs.20-30 crores every year from BCCI to develop and support cricket infrastructure and other related activities in the State.

Moreover, not more than two terms or as stipulated under any NSDP - National Sports Development Policy (if any that comes up in future), should be allowed to any office bearer or holder involved in cricket administration at BCCI or at State Cricket Associations. Every two years or as stipulated under NSDP, elections must be mandatorily held for the office bearers of the State Cricket Associations. Age limits must be prescribed for holding any office in either BCCI or State Associations. For instance, 65 could be the upper age limit for all such office hollders. All conflicts of interests instances should be disallowed to hold any office in BCCI or State Associations. BCCI and affiliated State Cricket Associations must adhere to the regulations and norms laid down by NSDP, ensure compliance and allow  adequate support and augmentation by the government/s in their endeavours (whenever required). After all, BCCI (a Society registered in Tamil Nadu) - despite its claim as a private entity, presents its cricket Team -Team India as the official National Cricket Team in international arena. Players of the BCCI selected Team are considered to be wearing the India cap and not the BCCI cap. These players are recognised by international cricket Boards and Teams to be representing India and not BCCI. No wonder, Team India's fortunes are synonymous with enormous national pride and honour. However, BCCI and affilaited State Associations must retain their full operational autonomy without any outside interference of any sort in their affairs.

As a policy, adequate national and state cricket talent scholarships and stipends (annual) should be provided by State Associations and by BCCI wherever there isn’t any allowing on a regular basis to talented young but financially challenged cricketers at U-14/U-16/U-19 level to finance their studies and education at Schools, Colleges and Universities. Financial assistance to the talented but needy may even begin at the age of 8 or 9 right until College. Corporate sponsorships should also be institutionalized by BCCI and State Associations in the development of school and college infrastructure and their cricketers. For instance,  “Catch them Young” program, etc.could be dovetailed  or combined with the sponsorship program. BCCI is already running suitable compensation program for players in domestic matches and pension and other financial assistance programs for retired cricketers and all those initiatives must continue.

Adhering to some important sporting norms like the anti-doping regulations of WADA allowing random sampling of Indian players by an independent national or international agency, setting up anti-corruption units in BCCI/IPL and State Associations to monitor and check irregularities around matches, leveraging technology and accepting the DRS technology to bring umpiring decisions in Team India's matches at par with majority of other Test playing nations are some of the other important issues that BCCI needs to immediately focus on.

Till the time the structure is put in place by BCCI, a panel/pool of talented players from the current domestic circuit - say fifteen fast bowlers, ten spinners, fifteen batsmen and five wicketkeepers should be put in place by the national selectors working in collaboration with the State selectors. This panel should be selected for a period of a minimum of one year. Out of these, based on their skills and suitability they should be further screened for the pools of three formats. Some overlaps would surely happen. And then these shortlisted and screened players should form the core of India A teams for each of the three formats and they should undergo extended training and development program at NCA - two times a year. Adequate matches (both domestic and international) must be given to these three separate India A teams. Adequate chances to perform must be given to each player in the pool to display his skills and prowess. Every year the bottom 15-20 percent non-performing players should be dropped and the pool be replenished with fresh faces, following the same screening process. This pool of players should be awarded an annual contract by BCCI. On the same lines, panels/pools should be selected in Junior and Women’s cricket. They should be accordingly given extended period at NCA - under the tutelage of NCA Director and Coaches there. The junior panel should be carefully selected for a minimum of two years.

Lately, domestic cricket has thrown a few prospects before us. Likes of Ishwar Pandey, Sandeep Sharma, Siddharth Kaul, Parvez Rasool, Jiwanjot Singh, Ankit Rajpoot, Shahbaz Nadeem, Mandeep Singh, Kedar Jadhav, R.Paliwal, Manish Pandey, Mohd.Shami, Unmukt Chand, etc. exude hope for Indian cricket. However, most of them are in their mid-20s and are yet to prove their credentials in domestic cricket over a longer period of time. It is up to BCCI to take these and some other prospects under its wings, nurture and transform them into exciting reliable players who could serve Indian cricket for long. Amongst the perennial benchers, it’s time now Shikhar Dhawan is brought into the ODI and T20 fold at the top of the order. Mukund does not look that he yet belongs there and he seems to have lost it - unless he comes back strong after sorting out technical deficiencies. It is also time to end experimenting at the No.6 slot with Yuvraj, Raina and Jadeja and give Badrinath that spot. Badri has everything to succeed at No.6 in comparison to these three who just don’t seem to have it given the chances that they have had. Also, Rahane - a great prospect, needs to be given his due in all three formats of the game and with an extended run and see how he fares in each of these formats at that level. Rohit Sharma, in all fairness, still looks that he has it in him to succeed at least in the two shorter versions. Somebody at BCCI or in the selection committee or even say Dravid or Sachin or even Gavaskar needs to have a detailed conversation with him and help him sort out his mental problems - whatever it may be. He cannot be moving in and out of the team like this as it doesn’t either augur well for him or for the balance of the team. It’s time he delivers on consistent basis or he should be dropped for good from Tests. Similar opportunity is there for Sreesanth to get back into the Test scheme of things especially when Zaheer is near the end of his innings. Sreesanth is a wicket taking bowler and he deserves another look in provided he is ready to channelize his energies in his bowling than in antics and extra-curricular activities outside the field. Post rehabilitation, Umesh Yadav @140kmph+ certainly needs to get back into the Test and ODI teams. With long standing performance issues with both Test openers, there is a genuine call to draft in the classy and technically correct Wasim Jaffer - who has had a prolific and magical 2012-13 season, to provide much needed stability and solidity at the top of the order.

Almost all of the above (and there are many more which require another write up) are indicative of the fact that the answers lie within BCCI and within its member Associations and their efforts and decisions directly impact the National Team’s fortunes in some way or the other. Without a doubt, some of these prescriptions look radical and many of them are tough to decide and to execute. However, it doesn’t mean that required actions cannot or should not be taken because they are tough or require a lot of will and effort. There is nothing that can’t be changed provided the required will is there. The potential positives of such decisions and actions are too valuable to be ignored anymore. Given the fact that cricket is a religion in this country and people's love and support for this sport needs to be duly respected by BCCI. The dynamics and demands of the game have changed too, so have people's aspirations for the sport and so must BCCI in its response to the demands of these times. This is what will take Indian cricket to desired glories and heights.