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Sunil Gavaskar, in one of his latest articles for Mid-Day, expressed disappointment that the Ishan Kishan-led East Zone tried to win the 2026 Duleep Trophy final based on their first-innings lead. Winning the title decider on a first-innings lead remains a debatable topic in Indian domestic cricket, and the Indian cricket legend believes it needs to be resolved seriously.
How could the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) resolve the issue in domestic cricket? Maybe by enforcing the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), suggested Sunil Gavaskar. Years ago, BCCI made headlines by forming a committee. The committee's major task was to appoint coaches, selectors, and conduct the interviews. Is the committee still in power or in existence? Nobody knows.
Sunil Gavaskar asks BCCI to expand the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC)
Gavaskar mentioned in his latest column that the Committee could address the issues in domestic cricket if the cricket board asks it to do so. In 2022, the cricket board formed the committee with Ashok Malhotra, Jatin Paranjape and Sulakshana Naik.
The 1983 World Cup winner, Sunil Gavaskar, suggested to the board to appoint some of the big names in Indian cricket like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, Ravi Shastri, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, and Virender Sehwag.
"There are no longer any committees in BCCI today apart from the selection committees and the CAC. Perhaps the time has come to expand the CAC and its brief to include selecting the selectors and coach, and also look at fixtures — domestic and international, and all things related to Indian cricket. There are some incredibly experienced former cricketers whose expertise can be utilised to be on this committee," Gavaskar wrote in his column for the Mid-Day.
Sunil Gavaskar proposes some names for CAC
If there is any fault in domestic cricket, which could leave a bad intention over the national cricket team's overall performance, that could be addressed by the CAC members.
"How about names like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, Ravi Shastri, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Virender Sehwag — to name a few? The President and Secretary will be there too," he added.
The former cricketer asked the board not to limit CAC only to men's cricket, but also to utilise it for women's cricket too, as the growth of the national teams is linked with the domestic tournaments.
Sunil Gavaskar suggests BCCI to utilise CAC for women's cricket as well
Highlighting the recently played Test match in Colombo between India and Sri Lanka, Gavaskar had written in his article that the Indian cricket team struggled to bowl out on Day 5 of the Test, and eventually ended the match in a draw, because the bowlers barely faced similar situations in domestic cricket.
"When this committee interacts with the coach and captain and the head of the NCA, it carries a heft beyond measure. A similar committee for women’s cricket, too, where experience and expertise meet to take calls to take Indian cricket forward," wrote Gavaskar.
"Just thinking about this gives one goosebumps. Will it ever happen, or is it just a dream?" he concluded.
