More Chappells thrown at Ganguly

Greg Chappell's unprovoked statements against Saurav Ganguly re-ignited what most of us Cricket-lovers thought was dead and buried. Just like Saurav Ganguly himself was, in the words of Kiran More, who clearly mentioned that Saurav will not be considered for selection in future irrespective of his domestic performances.

Greg Chappell, in conversation with The Guardian, went on to talk about how important being the captain was to Saurav's life and finances. The not-so-clever use of the word "finances" triggered a whole new wave of outrage not only from the usual Saurav fans, but also from the Saurav bashers. Greg Chappell, through such unwarranted accusations, is proving himself to be the master of under-handed attacks. Remember, Greg Chappell was the captain who instructed his brother Trevor to bowl under-arm in an ODI against New Zealand some 25 years back. And we sure seem to be witnessing history repeat itself.

What this whole incident did was to infuse new life into Saurav Ganguly's chances of making it back into the team. Till a few days ago, everyone except Bengalis and die-hard Saurav fans had forgotten about Saurav in the wake of Team India's recent successes in Pakistan. Yuvraj Singh, the man whose inevitable inclusion in the team led to Saurav's exit, had played in such breath-taking fashion that people started asking "Saurav who?” But with Chappell's ill-timed, ill-witted statements, Saurav may just have won his cap back.

As if Chappell's foolishness was not adequate, Kiran More, the chairman of selectors, issued another inciting statement when he said that Saurav will not be considered for selection even if he performs extremely well in the domestic matches. That statement, in principle, amounts to an open admission of a completely undemocratic selection procedure. Any person, whatever his age is, if he is playing well, should be considered for selection. Please note that "Playing Well" includes all the aspects of cricket such as fielding and training too. If Saurav Ganguly can prove to be a good cricketer again, there is no reason why Mr. More should prevent him from returning to the squad.

Between Mr. More's lack of political correctness and Chappell's reluctance to get over his hatred for Saurav, the one man who has benefited the most is Saurav Ganguly himself. As a cricket fan, I would love to see Saurav earn his place back in the team, and return to the glorious form that he once displayed. However, I would not like him to be a part of the team for anything less than his best form. Unfortunately, due to the current sympathy wave that looks to be emerging in Saurav's favor, he might just be back in the team, albeit not on merit.

In a nation that runs more on emotion than on reason, the biggest loser, if that happens, could be our beloved Team India.