Bhubaneswar: With the chairman of the BCCI senior selection committee Chetan Sharma resigning from his position Friday, sources said that Odisha’s Shiv Sundar Das has been named interim chairman. Shiv Sundar Das hence, becomes the first person from Odisha to head the prestigious panel.
Chetan was forced to resign after some of his controversial comments captured during a ‘sting’ operation went viral on social media platforms. Sharma met senior board officials Thursday where he was told that senior cricketers of the Indian team including Rohit Sharma, HardikPandya and Virat Kohli have lost faith in him. BCCI officials also informed Sharma that Rohit and Hardik, who are captains of Indian teams in different formats, were reluctant to attend meetings where he was present. Hence Sharma had no option but to resign.
A senior BCCI official on conditions of anonymity said Friday that it was a matter of time before Sharma had to put in his papers. “When national cricketers lose faith on a selector, there is no other option left for the latter,” he said.
With Sharma’s resignation, there are currently four members in the panel. They are Shiv Sundar, Subrata Bandopadhayay, Salil Ankola and S Sharath. Out of the four, Shiv Sundar has the maximum international exposure. He has played 23 Tests for India and four ODIs. Even though both Bandopadhayay and Ankola have represented India in various formats, they do not have the same amount of international experience as the former Odisha player has.
Sources said Friday that the BCCI decided to name Shiv Sundar interim chairman of the senior selection panel keeping his experience in mind. It is indeed a good step as Shiv Sundar has a sound cricketing brain and is a keen observer of the game. The BCCI also doesn’t want to hastily name a chairman, keeping in mind the controversy created by Sharma. The board will observe how the present panel goes about its job. If it is satisfactory, Shiv Sundar may well be asked to continue in the role for a full term.