Who calls the shots, players or boards?
Author: The Times of India
Date: 03 May 2007
Category: World News
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The games that are on between players and sports boards are worth a front seat!
The recent tiff between the Badminton Authority of India (BAI), and top badminton players Chetan Anand, Jwala Gutta, and Shruthi Kurien is a classical case.
The three refused to attend the national training camp in Hyderabad, as their dates were clashing with international events.
While BAI has made it clear that they cannot participate in international events without attending the camp, the players are refusing to budge. The sporting fraternity has felt the tremors of similar tussles in the past too.
In 1998, the Hockey federation had benched six senior hockey players, including former captain Dhanraj Pillay, after the Bhusan Asiad, for their outburst against the Hockey federation over payment of match fees.
Even way back in 1989, BCCI tasted the Srikanth-led team's wrath for "inadequate payments." It's been seen that boards have the final say in such debates.
Former player and chief coach of the national badminton team Vimal Kumar, describes the "helplessness" of the players in such issues, saying, "Players cannot oppose the boards, as the latter hold the power of certifying them for international events. Boards have scant regard for even players' associations. We need to evolve a mechanism to sort out such issues."
Dhanraj feels that accountability is one of the grey areas that need to be addressed. "Players are benched if they don't perform well, but who questions board members for poor performance? The latter's lobby is much stronger. A closer look at the composition of the boards shows that some members are at the helm for 10 to 20 years in a stretch," Dhanraj says.
The fact that most board members are honorary dilutes their accountability. But Venkat Rao, former vice president of the BCCI defends, "Agreed that we are all honorary members, but that doesn't mean we are not dedicated. After all it's the love for the game that inspires us to be board members. You do not have to take home a handsome salary to be dedicated."
Indian football team's former captain Baichung Bhutia however feels that the system's needs to change. He opines, "We can take a leaf out of the way clubs in the West operate. Dedicated professionals who know the nature of their role run sports bodies in the west. They can handle conflicts with players with greater sensitivity. Sadly, some Indian board members miss objectivity."
