India-Bangladesh Test in danger owing to lack of funds

What’s the story?

Troubles don't seem to end for the Board of Control for Cricket in India, as the beleaguered board is now staring at another crisis. According to reports in The Hindu, the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) has stated its inability to host the India-Bangladesh Test due to lack of funds.

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India are scheduled to host Bangladesh for a one-off Test match after the ODI series against England. However, the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Uppal, Hyderabad has stated its inability to host the match owing to financial crunch. This has put the BCCI in a real iffy position.

In October, the Supreme Court of India issued an order to the Indian board to halt all fundings to the state associations in lieu of its non-cognisance with the Lodha panel recommendations. However, the Court then allowed funds to be disbursed before the England series.

The Court has now come down hard on the BCCI and have removed president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke, and have asked the BCCI to adopt all recommendations. This has once again left the series against Bangladesh in a real haze and there is no clarity regarding the series.

The heart of the matter

The Supreme Court has also informed that a new panel would be put in place on January 19 and this panel would then be in charge of the business operations of the BCCI. Rahul Johri, the BCCI CEO, and the person who is currently in charge of the day-to-day operations would approach the Lodha panel and would present the concerns raised by the Hyderabad Cricket Association.

In a separate development, the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association has also expressed their reluctance to host the two four-day matches between India and England's Under-19 teams in February. The four-day games were scheduled for February 13-16 and February 21-24 in Chennai, but TNCA has expressed its inability to host these games owing to "domestic programs" scheduled during the same window.

What next?

With the Supreme Court expected to introduce a new set of panel members, it would be interesting to see what the future course of action would be. Also, owing to the new set of guidelines the flow of funds could be more in order and this could set the tone for the season this year.

Sportskeeda’s Take

The BCCI has been facing a torrid time owing to the Lodha Panel recommendations and its repercussions were felt for the past 6 months. There were many times when the Board was hauled up by the Supreme Court for not adopting the recommendations. Finally, the Apex Court cracked its whip and axed both Anurag Thakur and Ajay Shirke, and this has pushed the BCCI in a state of frenzy.

However, things look promising if and when the new panel takes charge and this could have a positive effect on the upcoming season.