BCCI AGM to appoint new selection panel tomorrow

In what is expected to be a smooth and routine AGM here tomorrow, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is all set to revamp its senior selection committee by making at least four changes in the five-man panel following the completion of their term.

Four members of the current panel, including chief selector Krishnamachari Srikkanth, are to depart after having completed their tenure of four years, during the course of which they saw India ascend the pinnacle of world cricket -- in both Tests and ODIs -- with the World Cup triumph last year being the icing on the cake.

Srikkanth (South Zone) and fellow-selectors Narendra Hirwani (Central), Raja Venkat (East) and Surendra Bhave (West) have completed their term and are not eligible to continue as per the Board's norms, which has not been followed strictly in the past. In the 1980s, Chandu Borde was a selector for four years, including two as chairman of the panel and then returned to head the committee for yet another term of three years from 1999-2000 to 2001-02, as per the "BCCI Statistical Annual", a publication that has been discontinued over the last 3 years.

Current secretary Sanjay Jagdale was also a selector for a total of seven years between 2000-01 and 2007-08 barring the 2004-05 period. The fifth selector in the incumbent panel, Mohinder Amarnath (North), has completed just one year of his tenure and can be re-appointed provided the Board members -- especially from North -- are in his favour.

However, there have been reports that his re-appointment may not happen as there is a move to make either another former Delhi Test cricketer Chetan Chauhan or Punjab's Vikram Rathore as the zonal selector in his place.

"Mohinder Amarnath had a tiff with Srikkanth as he wanted to replace (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni with (Virender) Sehwag (in the aftermath of India's row of eight Test defeats in England and Australia). As captain of Chennai Super Kings, Dhoni has the backing of the president (N Srinivasan)," an official of a BCCI affiliate said on condition of anonymity. When he was brought into the panel from the Indian Premier League governing council, Amarnath was reported to have been promised chairmanship of the committee once Srikkanth completed his term.

If Amarnath is not retained, Roger Binny, who is the frontrunner to take Srikkanth's place from South Zone, would become the new chief selector, it is learnt. There is a tussle going on for the sole representative's spot from East zone with quite a few claimants like Deep Das Gupta, Dewang Gandhi, Arup Bhattacharjee (all from Bengal), Orissa's Debasish Mohanty and Jharkhand's Subroto Banerjee and the zonal representatives have to come to a consensus.

The final decision on the appointment of selectors, who would get Rs 40 lakh annually as salary, lies with the Board members after they get feedbacks from the zones, according to the BCCI sources.

From West, Mumbai's Abey Kuruvilla, a former India pace bowler, appears to be the frontrunner after having chaired the junior selection committee that picked the World Cup Under-19 winning team.

Others in the running are former pacer Karsan Ghavri, ex-stumper Nayan Mongia and former coach Anshuman Gaekwad, it was learnt. Former UP wicketkeeper-batsman Sunil Chaturvedi's name is the most prominent from among those making the rounds from Central Zone. The AGM will also appoint the junior and women's selection panels, plus more than a dozen various sub committees, including the IPL Governing Council that is now headed by Rajiv Shukla.

IPL matters are bound to come up for discussion, including the court case involving the cash-strapped Deccan Chargers. Routine matters like passing of the annual report and balance sheet would also be taken up as the Board will determine how much money would be disbursed to the affiliates by the parent unit as subsidy from TV rights and IPL revenue.