DUBAI Former India all-rounder Madan Lal backed Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) decision to ban five domestic players in the wake of match fixing saying it would send a strong message to youngsters.
“BCCI has taken the right decision,” Madan Lal told XPRESS. “Players should not involve in such business and these things have to be dealt hard,” added Madan Lal, who will be in the UAE as part of the Young Talent Cricket Academy’s (YTCA) summer camp from July 6 to 13.
“This is a good message to all players involved in the Indian Premier League (IPL). They should understand that such deeds can end their career permanently and will kill their reputation,” said the 61-year-old, who has played 39 Tests and 67 ODIs for India and was part of the 1983 World Cup winning squad.
While T.P. Sudhindra (Deccan Chargers) was handed a life ban, Shalabh Srivastava (Kings XI Punjab) was given a five-year ban. Mohnish Mishra (Pune Warriors), Abhinav Bali (no contract) and Amit Yadav (Kings XI Punjab) got an one-year ban.
Madan Lal also agreed that it was difficult to provide a separate window for IPL in the ICC’s Future Tours Programme owing to the tight schedule. “It’s a very tricky thing. Other countries too will demand for it and it will get complicated. ICC schedule is already tight and it’s difficult to fit in IPL,” he said adding that BCCI has done a wonderful job and it was wrong to say it was controlling ICC.
“BCCI has done a great job. Definitely money is flowing from India and everybody is looking towards India. BCCI are well orgraised and have done a great job promoting cricket and we can see the results. They are not controlling the game but are very powerful,” said Madan Lal, who was the coach of the UAE team during their historical triumph in the ICC Trophy in 1994 which helped them qualify for the 1996 World Cup.
Going down memory lane, Madan Lal said: “It was those great moments. We were all together for some time and working really hard. The players were looking forward to the tournament and responded well when it mattered. The boys lived up to the expectations.”
Surprisingly Madan Lal was not part of the UAE team when they travelled for the World Cup. “It was disappointing. After qualifying with such great efforts it was sad. But I think that’s the way it goes.
“The UAE has always been close to my heart since then. I still keep meeting most of the players, including captain Sultan Zarwani, whenever I travel to the UAE.”
Asked about who is the favourite to win the Twenty20 World Cup to be held in September, he said: “It’s very difficult to predict. A couple of bad overs and the match is gone. India have a chance since they have played a lot of Twenty20. But West Indies looks good and also Pakistan and Sri Lanka.”
