Ashokanand is new KSCA prez

'Reviving events is a top priority'

PR Ashoka-nand, the senior-most vice-president, expectedly was elevated as the new president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association after the post fell vacant following the demise of Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar.

The last scion of the Mysore royal family passed away following a cardiac arrest on December 10, less than a week after he assumed office for the second term. Wadiyar had beaten rival group candidate Sadananda Maiya in the December 1 elections to the association.

“We’ll do whatever our late president had envisioned,” said the former Karnataka player after he was formally elected the president at Friday’s Managing Committee meeting here.
“He (Wadiyar) had a great vision. His biggest ambition was to make Karnataka the best cricket association in the country and we’ll ensure that his wishes are fulfilled. We’ll try to revive all the tournaments, like KPL (Karnataka Premier League), YS Ramaswamy (memorial knockout tournament for Group I teams), and other T20 tournament (for Group I teams), which were not held.
”
Striking a philosophical note, Ashokanand said: “I know it happened suddenly… The former president passed away. But we have to take life as it comes. I’m sure with the support of all the members of the committee and the association, we’ll definitely go forward. We look forward to making this a better association and a more member-friendly association.”

There was a speculation that treasurer Dayanand Pai had evinced ‘keen interest’ to take up the position but the members arrived at a consensus to nominate Ashokanand, considered to be secretary Brijesh Patel’s loyalist.

KSCA spokesperson Vinay Mruthyunjaya, however, revealed that Ashokanand’s was one of three names under discussion along with Brijesh and Pai. “Both had been requested by members of the managing committee to take over but they chose to continue in their existing posts,” said Vinay while adding: “It has been a convention at the KSCA in the past of the vice-presidents taking over as presidents whenever there has been a vacancy and there had been no disagreement within the committee regarding that. Today’s was a unanimous decision. Brijesh Patel proposed Ashokanand’s name and Pai seconded it. Everyone was happy when it was proposed,” he remarked.

The vacant vice-president’s post will be filled in the course of the next few meetings, with one of the senior managing committee members to be nominated.

Ashokanand, meanwhile, has resigned as the chairman of the State senior selection committee. The 73-year-old had only recently replaced J Abhiram as the chief of selectors. Former Karnataka middle-order batsman R Sudhakar Rao, who is also the one of the vice-presidents, will now head the four-member panel that also includes Sanjay Desai, Fazal Khaleel and Dodda Ganesh.