Before it does anything else, the Board of Control for Cricket in India needs to appoint for itself someone who can coach it on the alphabets of professionalism. A famous Indian cricketer once memorably described the then Indian selection committee as a “bunch of jokers”. That epithet could now be used, with some relish and no prejudice, to describe all those who run, or claim to run, the BCCI. They have really made themselves the laughing stock of the entire cricketing world in the manner they have gone about appointing a coach for the Indian cricket team. The refusal of Graham Ford to accept the offer made to him is a clear indication that among well-known coaches the BCCI has very little credibility. It will be the height of innocence to believe that the reason Mr Ford cited for his refusal — the short notice given to him to take up the job — is the real cause for the rejection of the board’s offer. Mr Ford cannot possibly be unaware of the unhappy experience of Greg Chappell when he was coach of the Indian team. Mr Chappell’s lack of success in the World Cup was the least of his many causes of unhappiness. During his tenure as coach, he was the victim of factionalism and interference, which prevented him from functioning to his full potential. He was never allowed to have his own way. The word, control, in the BCCI loomed large over him as a coach, as it always has over Indian cricketers. It is difficult to imagine that this history did not influence Mr Ford’s decision. It will not be any exaggeration to say that under the present circumstances, the BCCI will find it extremely difficult to engage a coach, especially a foreign one.

There are two related points that need to be made in this context. First, it does appear that the BCCI treats the role a coach plays in contemporary cricket somewhat lightly. Caught in a time warp, it believes that the coach is a glorified version of what a manager used to be in the days of yore. This has to do with the second point, which is the BCCI’s steadfast refusal to professionalize itself. There is no better evidence for this than the fact that a politician is the president of the BCCI. What is needed is the appointment of a professional as the chief executive officer of the BCCI and to allow him to run it like a corporate body. Only such a person will allow a fellow professional to operate freely as the coach of the national team. Indian cricket cannot continue to occupy a halfway house between professionalism and amateurism.