BCCI To Remove Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly & VVS Laxman From Cricket Advisory Committee

Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, members of Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), are reportedly set to be relieved from their roles. The Indian Express has reported that the trio cannot continue their job due to the Conflict of Interest issue.

In the last one year or so, the conflict of interest has seen many losing their roles in various positions. And the BCCI is not making any exception for the three legendary cricketers either. Ganguly is currently serving as the President of Cricket Association of Bengal. The former India skipper is also a cricket expert, having his media commitments. Laxman, on the other hand, has his media commitments and is also the mentor of the IPL franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Tendulkar is ineligible for the post because his son Arjun is a member of India U-19 team. As per the new rule, a coach or selector cannot take over the job if his relative is in contention to make it to the team. In 2015, Narendra Hirwani had quit as the Chairman of the Madhya Pradesh’s selection panel as his son is a first-class cricketer for the state.

The news outlet further claimed that the members of the CAC will no longer be honorary. The BCCI is set to announce new members for the committee who will receive payments. Presently, Tendulkar, Ganguly and Laxman perform their role on an honourary basis.

Meanwhile, the BCCI sources are confident of the CAC having fresh members soon. In its final order on Thursday, the Supreme Court had stated,

“Until the elections to the BCCI take place, the CoA is empowered to consult with the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), comprising reputed former international cricketers and to constitute a committee of selectors…”.

As per the order, the CoA will first consult the current CAC panel to find out if any of them are willing to stay before finding replacements. The new members will be appointed at the BCCI Annual General Meeting.

Presently, the role of CAC is to appoint the head coach for the Indian cricket team. In 2016, the committee named Anil Kumble as the head coach while in 2017, Ravi Shastri was handed the job.

Meanwhile, the new committee will also decider whether to grant an extension to the present three-member senior selection committee. MSK Prasad (chairman), Devang Gandhi and Sarandeep Singh are currently the members of the selection panel.