The unthinkable happened in the IPL. Yes, Steve Smith was dropped for the first and second games. This is an insult Smith will never ever face in Australia. It sounds so ridiculous like the decision itself. Elsewhere, Rohit Sharma was fined a substantial amount and the cricketing world is facing a crisis just a couple of months away from the WTC final.
Smith an asset
We all know how great a batsman is Steve Smith. He is certainly not perfect. He has so many flaws as a cricketer but his batting pedigree is unquestionable. Nonetheless, Smith is among the modern day greats and his status as one of the great Australian batsman is set in stone. Steve Smith’s T20 credentials is not that great like a Kohli or Rohit but it isn’t that bad either. Such a legend when he went for just over his base price in the IPL auction, eyebrows were raised. It was felt in some quarters that Delhi Capitals stuck a pot of gold with such a cheap purchase.
Ricky Ponting, the current Delhi Capitals coach went on record to state that Smith will be an asset to his team.
“I think the fact that he’s been released from the franchise that he’s been at for a long time will make him a bit hungry as well this year. So, if he gets an opportunity with us — I think it will be in the top three somewhere — if he gets an opportunity, I’m sure he’ll have a great year for us,” cricket.com.au quoted Ricky Ponting as saying.
Rahane for Smith, that is stupid
Naturally, Smith was expected to be the mainstay of DC’s campaign. However, things took a bizarre turn. Smith wasn’t considered in the playing eleven for the first couple of games. This was so ridiculous and who was the player who replaced Smith? It was none other than Ajinkya Rahane. This was nonsense. A proven player like Smith replaced with a failure like Rahane. That too, in a format where Rahane is least comfortable with.
It is another story that Rahane has failed the Indian team in all formats but in this specific format, if you have a choice between Smith and Rahane, you always pick Smith 10 times out of 11. The 11th time, think and pick Smith. It is as simple as that. Better sense seems to have prevailed and now Smith is in the playing eleven. Infact he played a decent innings in DC’s win over Mumbai Indians after 5 attempts.
Rohit Sharm fined
Rohit Sharma, the Mumbai Indians captain has been fined 12 lakhs Indian rupees. This may not sound much when converted to dollars but in India, it is a substantial amount of money. It is the equivalent of a year’s salary for millions of Indian families.
For once, I appreciated the BCCI because to place such a hefty fine on a superstar, it is something BCCI has never done unless their authority is threatened. This makes me wonder. How is IPL able to be so strict where ICC is not? For such offence, in international games, the captain will only be fined match fee which is not a significant amount. IPL has shown the way and it is time for ICC to lead. Impose strict fines on slow over rates, bad behaviour etc.
WTC is in crisis
The inaugural World Test Championship (it definitely does not have a World Cup feeling to its name) is facing a major crisis in the days and weeks ahead. India is reeling under the second wave of Corona virus. It has wreaked havoc across the country. As a result, the British government have placed India under the red list which means travel from India will be highly restricted or it may not be possible at all.
All the Indian players who will be part of the WTC are involved in the ongoing IPL. There are 4 New Zealand players too who are involved in the IPL. The red list essentially means that except for unavoidable travel, no one will be allowed to enter The UK. Even then, everyone from India will have to be under strict quarantine for 10 days. IPL will finish on the 29th of May whereas the WTC finals will be on 14th of June. 10 days quarantine hardly leaves any period for the teams, especially India, to practise. Mind you, New Zealand would have played couple of tests against England by then. It remains to be seen whether the Indian team will be allowed to enter the UK.
Will BCCI seek postponement?
BCCI will do well to request the ICC to postpone the finals by a couple of weeks. This will give additional time for the teams to acclimatise and play a couple of games. On the otherhand, if the finals itself is cancelled, it will severely affect the finances of the ECB and ICC. It is a scenario the ECB cannot afford. I am sure there will be some sort of a compromise.
One vital factor in the favour of the World Test Championship final going ahead is its chosen location at Southampton’s Rose Bowl, a ground and on-site hotel capable of functioning under a fully bio-secure setup.
Looks like a lot depends on how events pan out over the next 2 months.
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