Bhowmick rubbishes rumours; praises Prabir for contribution

The BCCI’s ground and pitches committee member of the East Zone, Ashish Bhowmick, on Thursday sought to play down the controversy regarding his appointment and called Eden curator Prabir Mukherjee his ‘guru’ (mentor).

Denying reports that he had replaced Mukherjee as the curator for the third Test against England following the veteran’s differences with India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Bhowmick said: “It’s all media-concocted stories.

“I know him (Mukherjee) for many years and have learnt a lot from him. He is my guru. He is a living legend. I’ll work with him and hope to get some more knowledge from him. It’s just a routine affair. There’s absolutely no problem between us, nor there has been any instruction from the Board,” Bhowmick told reporters after his visit to Eden Garden on Thursday morning.

“As I represent the East zone, I’ve to visit many centres with Ranji Trophy going on. I’ve been visiting many centres for two months. It’s just one of those routine visits. But I’m delighted to be here again with Prabirda,” he added.

The duo showed a great camaraderie as the 83-year-old Eden curator joined him and said: “I’m proud that somebody is acknowledging in today’s world.

“But at the moment he is my boss being the East Zone curator... If he gives any instruction, I’ll have to obey him,” Mukherjee said with a broad grin. Bhowmick flew to Kolkata on Wednesday night on the Board’s instruction after Mukherjee reportedly had some differences about the pitch preparation for the third Test beginning here on December 5.

Dhoni has been insisting for turning wickets even after their 10-wicket humiliation against England on a customised Wankhede track. Mukherjee was critical of the captain’s demand and termed it unethical, saying preparing a similar type of track was not practically possible.

The four-match series is locked 1-1 with the third and fourth Test scheduled to be held in Kolkata and Nagpur (December 13-17), respectively.