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Afridi will continue to undergo rehabilitation for an injury sustained during the Pakistan Super League

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Aug-2018Shahid Afridi has pulled out of the Caribbean Premier League 2018 in order to tend to a knee problem that first occurred during the Pakistan Super League, for which he will continue to undergo rehabilitation.Afridi made the announcement through a tweet, expressing his disappointment at missing out on the “biggest part in sport”
After sustaining the injury while playing for Karachi Kings during the PSL, Afridi turned out for Edmonton Royals in the Global T20 Canada league, besides captaining ICC World XI against West Indies in a T20 at Lord’s in July. Afridi’s only previous stint in the CPL was with St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in 2015, during the tournament’s third season.The latest edition of CPL 2018 will commence on August 8, with the Trinbago Knight Riders taking on St Lucia Stars at Port of Spain. Jamaica Tallawahs, led by Andre Russel, will play their first match on August 10, against Knight Riders in the same venue.

The Cape Cobras have discontinued the contract of South Africa pace bowler Wayne Parnell with immediate effect

Liam Brickhill25-Sep-2018The Cape Cobras have discontinued the contract of South Africa pace bowler Wayne Parnell with immediate effect. Parnell, 29, signed a Kolpak deal with Worcestershire last week, having just been part of the county’s Vitality T20 Blast success. That decision effectively brought his international career to an end, and his unavailability for national selection has now prompted the cancellation of his Cobras’ contract.”The board of the World Sports Betting Cape Cobras unanimously decided to discontinue Parnell’s Cobras contract,” Nabeal Dien, Cobras’ chief executive officer, said. “It was a tough decision, as he was a senior and successful member of the Cobras squad in the past, winning four awards at the Cobras Player Awards in 2015-16. He was voted Player of the Year at that awards ceremony.”Parnell last played for South Africa in October 2017 against Bangladesh and featured in just two matches during the Ram Slam T20 last season, battling injury before losing his national contract earlier this year.Parnell has a deal to play in the upcoming Afghanistan Cricket League in Sharjah, cutting into the time he would have been available to play domestic cricket in South Africa this season.”His decision to sign Kolpak and also to participate in the Afghanistan Premier League has made him available for the Cape Cobras for a very limited period, while he would also not be available for international selection in future,” Dien said.While limited availability may have played a part, it appears Parnell’s decision to follow the likes of Morne Morkel, Kyle Abbott and Rilee Rossouw in taking up a Kolpak deal is at the crux of the Cobras’ decision. “We pride ourselves in being a conveyor belt for international South African players and it’s part and parcel of our mandate,” Dien said.Those concerns were echoed by Corrie van Zyl, Cricket South Africa’s general manager of cricket. “Every player who turns Kolpak, is one less that can be eligible for the South African team and therefore CSA needs to look at ways to protect itself against the loss of experienced and younger players,” Van Zyl said. “Our mandate is to produce players at domestic level who will represent South Africa.”We are concerned about the amount of players who have signed a Kolpak agreement, which makes them unavailable for national selection,” van Zyl added. “Although the experience of the Kolpak players is valuable, CSA needs to ensure that those players, who are still committed to playing for the Proteas in the future, are afforded the opportunities to develop.”Every franchise is entitled to select two Kolpak players in their playing eleven, but those Kolpak players must be paid from the franchise’s own funds, and therefore it is really up to the franchises to determine the value of that player to their team.”

Krunal Pandya looks likely to debut, while India will ponder their bowling combination on an Eden Gardens pitch that has proved pace-friendly in the recent past

The Preview by Saurabh Somani03-Nov-20181:31

Dasgupta: T20Is will be the real competition

Big Picture

The last time India played an international match without either Virat Kohli or MS Dhoni, with neither injured, was during the Nidahas Trophy in Sri Lanka in March, that ended memorably with Dinesh Karthik’s escape to victory against Bangladesh. Before that, you have to go as far back as the tour of Zimbabwe in July 2015. While it would be too much to say that India haven’t learned to survive without Kohli or Dhoni, their absence will leave an experience void in India, but as they showed in March, it is a void that can be overcome.West Indies, on the other hand, were supposed to have been fortified with the returns of Andre Russell, Kieron Pollard and Darren Bravo, but Russell it turns out, has been a late withdrawal from the squad. Courtney Browne, the chairman of selectors, said Russell was “injured” and his name has been withdrawn from the T20I series. With or without Russell, the 20-overs game has seemed like West Indies’ natural habitat in the past few years, and with several match-winners in the team, they will begin the three-match T20I series on at least equal footing with India. They had promised much in the ODIs before crumbling, and this is their last shot at redemption on tour, having handily lost the Test series too. Another casualty from their ODI series is Ashley Nurse, and the injury he picked up then has ruled him out.

Form guide

India WLWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
West Indies LLWWL

In the spotlight

Rohit Sharma has been in a rich vein of form in the white-ball cricket he has played recently, in the Asia Cup and the five-match ODI series against West Indies. As captain, he has delivered results consistently, whether on a regular basis with Mumbai Indians or in the stray opportunities he has got to lead India. Recently named in India’s Test squad to Australia too, everything is suddenly looking rosy for Rohit, a few short months since he was axed from the Test squad. Moreover, he is returning to his favourite venue, the scene of his Test debut and his world-record 264 against Sri Lanka in an ODI. And this will be the first time he’d leading India at the venue.Kieron Pollard first gained fame via his T20 exploits in the inaugural edition of the Champions League T20, and it’s the T20 format that has heralded his comeback to the team. Once among the most valuable players for any T20 side, Pollard has lost some of his lustre of late. He last played for West Indies more than a year ago, in September 2017. Differences with the West Indies board meant he, along with several others, didn’t play for a long time. A combative character in the middle, Pollard will be keen to show that his return makes a difference to the side.

Team news

For India, the series is a good opportunity to test young blood. They named their 12 on match eve, and indications are that Krunal Pandya is set to make his international debut, slotting in as the allrounder. It looks likely that one of Kuldeep Yadav or Yuzvendra Chahal will sit out, given that the Eden Gardens pitch has helped pacers of late. That means India should go in with Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and Khaleel Ahmed. If both Chahal and Kuldeep play, it could make for a long tail, which makes Krunal’s inclusion more likely. Between the wristspinning twins, if such things hold weight, Kuldeep might have the edge given his familiarity with the ground that is his home venue in the IPL.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 KL Rahul, 4 Manish Pandey, 5 Rishabh Pant (wk), 6 Dinesh Karthik, 7 Krunal Pandya, 8 Kuldeep Yadav/Yuzvendra Chahal, 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 Jasprit Bumrah, 11 Khaleel AhmedThe unavailability of Russell will leave West Indies with a hole. One of the best T20 cricketers, Russell’s addition to any team immediately adds depth because it’s almost like having two cricketers rolled into one. Without him, West Indies will need the others to step up. Shimron Hetmyer thrilled watchers with his audacious hitting during the ODIs, and he comes with a reputation as a hard-hitter in T20s too. Importantly, this series will serve as a showcase to IPL talent scouts, and someone who does well could fetch handsome contracts come auction time.West Indies (possible): 1 Rovman Powell, 2 Darren Bravo, 3 Shimron Hetmyer, 4 Sherfane Rutherford, 5 Kieron Pollard, 6 Carlos Brathwaite (capt), 7 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 8 Fabian Allen, 9 Khary Pierre , 10 Oshane Thomas, 11 Obed McCoy

Pitch and conditions

Ever since the Eden Gardens pitch was relaid a couple of seasons ago, it has had good bounce and carry for the pacers. Under lights, the ball tends to move a bit too. As it is in all T20 matches though, the batsmen shouldn’t have too difficult a time.The weather has taken a turn for the more pleasant, and the rain is expected to stay away on Sunday.

Stats and trivia

• 76.06 – Rohit Sharma’s batting average at the Eden Gardens, across formats. In 20 innings here, he has crossed 50 eight times, going on to a century four times – including on Test debut.
• 17.1 – the strike rate for pacers in T20 games at the Eden Gardens. It’s considerably higher than the 19.7 for spinners, giving more weight to the ‘pace at Eden’ theory.

Quotes

“Not just Russell and Pollard, but the rest of their team has also played a lot of T20 cricket, just like our team. They have their own league, and have more experience and it’s a format they enjoy the most. At the same time, they’ve found T20 success as well. We have to play good cricket to beat them, it won’t be that easy.”
“We’d like that to read 8-2 after the T20Is, but India start off as favourites.”

The main points from a day where the problems facing Australian cricket were laid bare

Daniel Brettig29-Oct-2018- Independent reviews of Cricket Australia and the Australian men’s team, conducted by Simon Longstaff and Rick McCosker, found that in chasing higher performance on and off the field, the governing body and its showpiece team lost sight of the spirit of cricket.- The pursuit of higher performance on the field and more efficient governance off it was linked to the Argus review of team performance and the Crawford/Carter review of governance, both delivered in 2011.- These reviews helped enhance a CA system that resulted in record financial returns and reasonable amounts of success from weaker national teams than those of the preceding era, but also a developing culture of arrogance and control, both at the national and team performance level and also the governance and stakeholder management level, with state associations, the players’ association and corporate partners and broadcasters.- The spirit of cricket, deemed intrinsic to previous editions of CA’s strategy, was omitted from the 2017 edition, replaced by a ‘How We Play’ statement that talked of “smashing the boundaries” among other things. At the same time a set of guiding principles for the men’s national team ‘The Australian Way’, made no mention of respect for opponents or umpires.- Survey respondents pointed out that CA has become “arrogant” and “controlling”, and that the national team had countenanced forms of cheating as “playing hard to win”, while the wider organisation had allowed for instances of bullying under the cloak of “tough negotiations”.Cameron Bancroft and Steven Smith leave the press conference where they admitted to ball tampering•Gallo Images/Getty Images

– The review stated, “One of the most significant findings of this review is that the perceived causes of the ball-tampering incident at Newlands significantly overlap with the perceived current state of cricket in Australia. That is, the evidence suggests that Newlands was not an aberration – a cultural ‘outlier’.”- It went on, “Rather, it is an extreme example of a latent tendency growing out of the prevailing culture of men’s cricket in Australia – especially (but not exclusively) at the elite level. As it happens, this fits with the opinions of keen observers of Australian cricket who report, with considerable regret (and perhaps the benefit of hindsight), that the events in Newland were ‘disappointing but not surprising’.”- The review goes on to outline a set of “shadow values and principles” that more accurately define CA, as opposed to the ideals expressed in the Australian Cricket Strategy and its ‘How We Play’ section. These include things like: “COMMAND AND CONTROL, “ONLY RESULTS MATTER”, “AUSTRALIA NEEDS US TO WIN, “POPULARITY MATTERS”, “INDIVIDUAL FIRST”, “COMBATIVENESS AND AGGRESSION IS GOOD”, “UNLEASH THE BEAST”, “KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN”, and “WE’RE GREAT ON DIVERSITY”- A series of 42 recommendations made by the review include the forming of a permanent Ethics Commission for Australian cricket with three members on the panel, the twice annual meeting of an Australian Cricket Council comprising CA, states, the players and the umpires, and rapid action to improve relations between CA and the ACA. CA has accepted these recommendations.- Among the recommendations CA has not accepted are the removal of Test and ODI players from consideration for the T20 team to allow them to play more state cricket, and the suggestion that the Minutes of CA board meetings be made public. CA’s chairman David Peever has insisted he will retain his position until the state associations tell him otherwise and that the bans of David Warner, Steven Smith and Cameron Bancroft will not be overturned.

Heart says AB; head wants Smith, says CEO as franchise aims to set right past mishappenings with big-name players

Umar Farooq19-Nov-2018A day ahead of the draft for the fourth season of the Pakistan Super League, Lahore Qalandars have an envious conundrum to resolve: AB de Villiers or Steven Smith?Both Smith and de Villiers are likely to be the first two players to be snapped up, and with just two picks available in Platinum, the opening round of the draft, Qalandars could be left with just one of them. Though it emerged that Qalandars had apparently settled on de Villiers as their pick, Sameen Rana, the Qalandars chief executive officer, denied it, saying Smith was still under their consideration.”My heart goes with ABD, but my brain is stuck with Smith, so I will take my time to decide who we should go with,” he told ESPNcricinfo. “It’s a first pick again, and very much important, as always. I know every team must be eyeing one of those two, and have their calculations. We have two picks in first round for Platinum, and this is very crucial for us. We are weighing up all the options, and we are also looking for a captain and having a local is the best way forward this time.”Making this dilemma worse is Qalandars’ dubious past with big-name players. Qalandars have had a history of picking up big names with huge expectations only to end up last every time. Over the last three seasons, they have lost 17 out of 26 games.In the first season, they went with Chris Gayle, but it backfired as the opener landed in Dubai injured. He went on to play five games, nevertheless, but ended up with an average of 20.60. Gayle was traded next season with Karachi Kings. During the same season, Qalandars also had to deal with Yasir Shah getting banned after testing positive for a banned substance, and Mustafizur Rahman going down with injury and not joining the team at all.In their second season, Qalandars were hit by injuries to Shaun Tait, Dwayne Bravo and Anton Devcich, while in the third, their hottest pick, Chris Lynn, dislodged his shoulder in the Big Bash League, and Sohail Khan, whom they roped in after a trade with Karachi Kings suffered a back injury. Brendon McCullum was the only regular member of the side, but he underwhelmed, going two seasons without a half-century despite being captain.”We are not confused, just giving a second thought because we have had enough troubles in the past three seasons,” Rana said. “We went with some big names in every season, but each time our decision backfired. We couldn’t resist, and when you have the first pick of the draft you just go with the temptation of big names. But after three seasons, we have realised and have had a lot of learning. That’s why I am giving it a second thought, either to pick ABD, who has achieved everything in his career, or Smith, who is ambitious about his career to stay relevant.”Qalandars have also struggled with the captaincy. Azhar Ali, their first captain, was stripped from the job, and never played again though he was retained for the 2017 season, before being released. Over three seasons, other teams retaining their local captains had left Qalandars scant on options. But now, for the first time, they have a wider pool of Pakistan players to pick from – Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hafeez and Shahid Afridi.”We were a bit unfortunate as we didn’t have any options from the local circuit to have a captain and went with Brendon instead, but the ideas literally backfired because the foreigner can never have first-hand information about the local lads at the bench or in the playing XI, so this has always been a problem.”We need someone who has full understanding about local dynamics and is very much aware about the mindset of the Pakistan culture. We are more mature than ever. I cannot pull back what happened in [the past] three seasons, but we are positive and in high spirits.”

The English left-arm seamer was about to go and celebrate his wedding anniversary when he heard he had been picked up in the auction

Matt Roller18-Dec-2018Players’ attitudes to following the IPL auction have always been varied. Some watch the whole thing unfold on TV, desperate to find out who is going where and who might be joining them. Plenty more will follow it on Twitter, or wait for the call from their agent to find out if they’ve been successful.For Nottinghamshire seamer Harry Gurney, the experience was stranger than most. “It’s my wedding anniversary tomorrow, so my wife and I are on our way to a night away without our little baby to celebrate at a nice hotel,” he said”We drove over to drop little Arthur at his grandma’s house, which is 20 minutes from home, but when we got there I realised I’d forgotten something. I had to drive all the way home and get it.”I arrived back, walked into the kitchen, and my wife stood there and said: ‘You’ve been sold!’ I was ecstatic – my phone’s gone berserk with calls, texts, WhatsApps, Twitter notifications and all that.”On a day when Eoin Morgan, Alex Hales and Chris Woakes went unsold, Gurney’s 75 lakh (approx. USD 105,000) deal with Kolkata Knight Riders may have raised a few eyebrows for those that remember him for an underwhelming stint in England’s ODI team back in 2014.One obvious advantage that Gurney has over that trio is that he is not part of England’s World Cup plans, meaning he will be available for the duration of the tournament; the same factor was no doubt in owners’ minds during the bidding war for Sam Curran, which saw him fetch a 7.2 crore (approx. USD 1m) price with Kings XI Punjab.But among the number-crunching fraternity, it was no surprise to see Gurney sell. Since his move away from the England set-up, he has been the standout seam bowler in English T20 cricket.His whirly left-arm action may look ungainly, but few county batsmen will question its effectiveness: he has 58 wickets and an economy rate of 7.63 over the last three seasons, exceptional figures for a man who bowls almost exclusively in the Powerplay and at the death.Add in the fact that he plays half his games on the best batting pitch in England at Trent Bridge and it is easy to see why Gurney has caught the eye of franchises around the world this winter.He will arrive at the IPL after stints with Melbourne Renegades and Quetta Gladiators, and his excitement at a chance to show off his talent on the world stage is palpable.”Everyone I know who has been to the IPL talks about how big, how huge the whole thing is,” he said. “It’s undoubtedly the biggest T20 competition in the world, and arguably the pinnacle of the T20 game.”I feel like I’m getting towards the point where – other than Test cricket – I’ve ticked off most of the things you can achieve in the game of cricket, which is just so humbling.”Whether or not a strong set of performances can help him return to the international reckoning remains to be seen. Last month, Gurney told ESPNCricinfo that “breaking into the franchise scene is more on my radar” than winning an England recall.”If I end up pulling on an England shirt again in the T20 format then that’d be a fantastic offshoot of the main target,” he said, “but I want to get into franchise cricket, give a good impression, and hopefully keep doing that for a few years.”Gurney knows that there is no guarantee he’ll be playing every game of the IPL season. In Chris Lynn, Sunil Narine, and Andre Russell, KKR have three of the best overseas players in the competition, and competition for the fourth spot will be fierce – Anrich Nortje, Lockie Ferguson and Carlos Brathwaite will likely be competing to fill that berth.”It’s an opportunity to learn and to broaden my horizons, I guess. It’s a long competition, and there are always injuries or loss of form in professional sport, so I’d back myself to have a chance to make a real impact at some point.”I’ve got an opportunity to push my case before I get out there at the BBL and the PSL. Let’s hope I can take my chance.”

Dane van Niekerk, Tazmin Brits, Nadine de Klerk and Shabnim Ismail also played their part in overwhelming Sri Lanka by 39 runs

The Report by Liam Brickhill06-Feb-2019South Africa cruised to a 3-0 sweep in their T20I series against Sri Lanka with a 39-run win in the third match at SuperSport Park in Centurion. The hosts put in a complete performance with both bat and ball, running to 163 for 5 – the highest total of the series – after being put in to bat by Sri Lanka, and then sharing the wickets around with Sune Luus’ all-round efforts winning her back-to-back Player-of-the-Match awards.Consistency in batting was a primary goal for South Africa coming into this series, and the several changes that have rung through their top order resulted in the kind of performance coach Hilton Moreeng has been looking for. Four of the top five passed 20, and all kept their strike rates well above 100 as the runs flowed.Tazmin Brits and captain Dane van Niekerk kicked things off with a rapid 58-run opening stand, Brits peppering the cover boundary in a 29-ball 36 before she was caught off Inoka Ranaweera’s left-arm spin at the end of the eighth over. Van Niekerk swiped three fours and one majestic inside-out six over extra-cover before she had to leave the field with a stomach ailment halfway through the innings.Lara Goodall and Marizanne Kapp kept up the run rate in her absence, raising the hundred in the 13th over. Kapp fell in the pursuit of quick runs, but Luus entered the fray with two slog-swept sixes as South Africa raced past 150. Luus and van Niekerk – back in the middle having recovered from her symptoms – fell off consecutive deliveries in the final over but Faye Tunnicliffe swiped a boundary from the penultimate delivery to boost the score beyond 160.Set a daunting target, Sri Lanka’s chase got off to a disastrous start when Kapp bowled Prasadani Weerakkody with the second ball of the chase. Sri Lanka did not reach the boundary until Chamari Atapattu slashed a top-edge over the slips off Shabnim Ismail at the end of the fourth over. In a brief flurry, Atapattu and Hasini Perera picked up four boundaries in six balls thereafter, but the introduction of Luus’ legspin slowed things down again, while Nadine de Klerk struck in her very first over to bowl Perera for 13.Atapattu took a brace of boundaries off de Klerk and Luus, but the required rate was rising all the time and when Ismail returned to clean-bowl Atapattu with the first ball of her third over, Sri Lanka had lost their captain and almost any hope of winning the game.De Klerk was on a hat-trick when she removed Imalka Mendis and Nilakshi de Silva with successive deliveries in the 17th over, by which time the required rate had rocketed to almost 20. Kavisha Dilhari survived the hat-trick ball, and Shashikala Siriwardene once again exhibited some fierce strokeplay – including a remarkable checked drive, inside-out over cover – but South Africa’s total was never in any real danger.

It was another day of leather-chasing for Bangladesh as New Zealand made their highest Test total before claiming four wickets after tea

The Report by Mohammad Isam in Hamilton02-Mar-2019Kane Williamson’s second Test double century followed
by four wickets in the evening session put New Zealand on course for a comprehensive victory in Hamilton as Bangladesh wilted against a batting and short-ball onslaught. New Zealand compiled their highest ever total, 715 for 6 declared, as they raced along before Williamson declared the ball he brought up his latest milestone.Kane Williamson celebrates his 20th Test hundred•Getty Images

Watch NZ v Ban Live

Followers in the United States can watch New Zealand v Bangladesh live on ESPN+

Bangladesh ended the day with captain Mahmudullah and Soumya Sarkar at the crease, with Liton Das the only recognised batsman to come and still 307 runs from making New Zealand bat again. They just about survived a bouncer barrage which Tamim Iqbal had tried to counter with a battling 74 before eventually succumbing to Tim Southee.It had been an unforgiving experience for the Bangladesh bowlers as Williamson and Colin de Grandhomme added 110 in 15 overs after lunch to swell an already huge total. de Grandhomme enjoyed the freedom to play his shots, striking five sixes including three of Mehidy Hasan, as New Zealand eclipsed their previous highest total of 690 against Pakistan in Sharjah in 2014 and in the same over broke the 700 barrier.Mehidy had another tough time with the ball, finishing with 2 for 246 which were the most expensive figures by a Bangladesh bowler in a Test innings. The new-look pace attack didn’t fare any better either, as Khaled Ahmed, Jayed and debutant Ebadot Hossain combined to take 1 for 369 from their 87 overs. There was nothing to write home about.Williamson, who was dropped on 81 at slip on the second evening, was content to play the supporting act to the more aggressive Neil Wagner, who hit a career-best 47 off 35 balls as nightwatchman, and de Grandhomme. His only moment of aggression was taking on Jayed during one over in the morning session when he struck three fours off the seamer. He had brought up his century, and became the fastest New Zealander to 6000 Test runs, early in the morning session and it felt the only way of him not converting into something much larger was an error from himself.That mistake never came as he eased his way beyond 150 against a tired attack and a deep-set field. His main challenge appeared to be getting to 200 before he wanted to declare at the mid-afternoon drinks, but a pull off Jayed from his 257th delivery got the job done. It was marked in typically understated fashion by the captain.Tamim struck Southee for a six and two fours in an over to push back at the home side, before Shadman Islam joined in with three fours of his own. New Zealand dried up the boundaries in the post-tea period, as Wagner ramped up the short balls, and the verbals.The first hairy moment came in the 21st over when Wagner struck Tamim’s dangling bat as he ducked and left it exposed. Though he recovered to pull him properly in the next ball, the doubt had been placed.Shadman top edged a pull in Wagner’s next over, to end another promising start, having made 37 in an opening stand of 88. Mominul Haque fell immediately after clipping Trent Boult for two fours, only to edge a loose drive to be sharply caught at slip by Ross Taylor. Mohammad Mithun followed soon after, edging Boult to gully for a duck without any footwork.Southee then removed Tamim amid the chat going on with Wagner. Whether that disrupted the batsman or not, Tamim got himself in a horrid tangle as walked outside leg stump to a short delivery then left his bat in the air as he ducked. The catch for BJ Watling allowed him to equal Adam Parore’s tally of 201 dismissals as the most by a New Zealand keeper.It had been a fighting effort from Tamim, but his dismissal put the game in danger of a three-day finish. However, Mahmudullah survived a DRS call first ball that could have gone either way if the third umpire had believed the Real-time Snicko to caught behind appeal against Southee, but he ruled the spike did not match up with the pictures.Mahmudullah and Soumya survived the remaining 12 overs with several tight moments but managed to get the body out of the way on most occasions although Soumya was almost brilliantly caught by Wagner on the long leg boundary two overs from the close.

The BCCI and its state associations are yet to fully implement the Lodha Committee’s reforms. What happens now, and when will the board conduct its elections?

Nagraj Gollapudi20-Feb-2019Why is this hearing significant?This hearing has the potential to end the situation in which the BCCI has not carried out in full the Supreme Court’s orders on reforms. On July 18, 2016, the court approved the reforms recommended by the RM Lodha Committee and directed that they be implemented by all state associations; it subsequently amended certain reforms at the request of several state associations. To date, though, not a single member association of the BCCI, nor the parent body itself, has implemented the recommendations in toto.The CoA has now recommended that the BCCI conduct elections within 90 days from the court’s ruling and has requested, in its status report, that the court approve a timeline for elections.Why has the BCCI failed to hold elections?To conduct the elections, the states and the BCCI first need to comply with the new constitution, which was registered last August. That means they have to agree unconditionally to all reforms. Not one of the 34 state associations of the BCCI was fully compliant when the CoA submitted its status report on October 27. The CoA identified seven states as being “non-compliant”, while the rest fell under the “partially compliant” and “substantially compliant” categories.ALSO READ: CoA asks Supreme Court to suspend voting rights of non-compliant statesWhat are the contentious reforms?Although the state associations have set the ball rolling, many have dragged their feet on key reforms such as the cooling-off period, disqualification criteria, and selection panels. The most significant reform that BCCI members want the court to re-examine is the nine-year tenure limit set for office bearers in the new constitution. The members have suggested that, as per the original order of the court in 2016, the office bearers’ tenure at the BCCI and state associations was distinct, giving office-bearers a potential cumulative life of 18 years. However, under the new constitution, that limit has been reset to a cumulative nine years – whether at state level or at the BCCI or both.What can the court do to enforce its order?Follow the CoA’s recommendation of barring errant state associations from their voting rights in the BCCI elections and also withhold their funding.Anything else the BCCI members want to pursue?Several BCCI members want the CoA’s reign to be brought to an end. But that will only happen if they conduct elections. Nonetheless, the members want to make the court aware of the deep divisions and mistrust within the two-member CoA comprising Vinod Rai, the former Comptroller & Auditor General of India, and Diana Edulji, the former India women captain.Vinod Rai, the chairman of the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators•AFP

The issues that have split the CoA
The Rahul Johri sexual-harrassment allegations
The hiring of the India women coach
The Hardik Pandya-KL Rahul chat show controversyHow does the divide in the CoA really matter?It matters because the CoA’s squabbles have now spilled over to the cricket arena. Take the controversial TV-show comments of Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul: Rai and Edulji agreed the players ought to be penalised, but differed strongly on how to go about it. The BCCI’s legal team recommended that the players be suspended pending an inquiry with the Ombudsman being the final adjudicator. Both Rai and Edulji wanted the court to give directions on the appointment of an Ombudsman, a position the BCCI has not filled since late 2016. Finally, at the behest of Narasimha, both CoA members agreed to lift the suspension on the players.Their differences are now reflected in the fact that Edulji attended the January 17 hearing with her personal lawyer – Amit Sibal, the son of senior politician and prominent lawyer Kapil Sibal, who himself is representing one of the state associations. Although Edulji has not made any public statement it is understood that she wants to safeguard herself and hence wanted a lawyer.That’s it, then?Keeping in mind the differences between Rai and Edulji the court could consider adding new members – at least two – to the CoA which would allow it to reach a consensus.And, finally, who is conducting the hearing?At least three chief justices have presided over the case stretching back five years. On Thursday the bench will comprise Justices SA Bobde and AM Sapre.