India vs Sri Lanka: BCCI Could've Prevented Embarrassment In Guwahati By Spending Just Rs 50000

Lack of proficiency among the ground staff saw the first T20I between India and Sri Lanka being called off at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati on Sunday. In a bizarre scene, water seeped in through the covers onto the pitch making it impossible for the game to be played.

It started pouring 15 minutes before the scheduled time after India captain Virat Kohli won the toss and invited the opposition captain to bat first. The rain spell lasted less than an hour but the ground could not be prepared in time as the dampness on the pitch prevented the start of the game.

The ground staff then resorted to various measures, ranging from using hair-dryers to steam irons, in order to dry the wet patches near the middle of the pitch, but to no avail. And almost three hours after the game was about to start, the umpires called off the game.

Ever since the game was called off, there has been criticism from all around for BCCI and Assam Cricket Association for the way the entire matter was handled. Former India cricketers Zaheer Khan and Aakash Chopra had also ridiculed the measures taken to dry the pitch during an international match.

50,000 was all it needed:

Well, the BCCI could have avoided the embarrassment in Guwahati by spending only INR 50,000. It is being said that the cost of the best quality covers for covering the pitch would have cost just Rs 50000 but since it was not there, the ground staff used a poor quality plastic which resulted in rainwater seeping into the pitch and the richest board in the world became the butt of all jokes on the social media for its negligence.

A BCCI official said that it was elementary and is a direct effect of the lack of experience among the new state association officials. He also pointed at the lack of preparedness of chief curator Ashish Bhowmick and BCCI CEO Rahul Johri.

“These things will happen as there is a learning curve that officials of all associations are faced with after the implementation of the Lodha reforms. No association had the opportunity to plan for succession and continuity,” the official told IANS.

“In this day and age continuity strategies remain one of the biggest concerns for stakeholders across the globe.The associations were never given the opportunity to address this concern. I think a lot of blame lies with the BCCIs curator and ultimately with the CEO who should at least had the foresight to ensure the basics were in place,” he added.

The second T20I will take place in Indore on Tuesday (January 7). Unlike Guwahati, there is no prediction of rain in Indore and thus the game is likely to go ahead without any interruptions.

Also Read: India vs Sri Lanka: Chemicals Being Used To Minimise Effect Of Dew In Second T20I