Sunday's elections to the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) have entered the homestretch. The build-up has been marked by plenty of charges and counters, with a clear polarisation which will decide the outcome of one of the most bitterly fought polls in recent times.
Active cricketers have by and large kept a studied silence. Deccan Herald did manage to catch up with two of Karnataka’s brightest jewels, skipper Rahul Dravid in England and ace leggie Anil Kumble here in the City, for their views. Excerpts:
Dravid: Since I am in England, to be honest, I have not been following the KSCA elections as much. The KSCA is one of the few associations in the country that is run by cricketers. I hope it continues and the cricketers will have a say in the matters in future as well. Vishy and Brijesh have been great role models for me when I started my career, and they have been a great influence on me as well. I have benefited from both of them in my career as a cricketer.”
“From wherever I have gone, I have seen that the KSCA has been one of the best run organisations in the country in the last ten years.
“Karnataka have shown the way in many fields. I hope we will continue to do so and will still remain a cricketer-friendly association.”
Kumble: I have known both Brijesh (Patel) and Vishy (Gundappa Viswanath) for many, many years now, obviously. They were people I looked up to when I was still in my early days as a cricketer.
I have had no problems with the way things have gone over the last decade or so. As a professional cricketer, I would like that a cricketer be in charge of running the activities of the association. The kind of mud-slinging and allegations that have come to the fore in the last few days is not a done thing.
“I also wonder why such charges surface a week or ten days before elections, and not with six months to go. It is not in good taste. I think it is high time we have a professional system in place. Karnataka has led the way in many areas, and if we can lead the way in professionalising the system and setting an example, it will be very good.
