After learning a lesson or two for bowing to some senior players’ resistance, the BCCI has finally decided to make it compulsory for the players to get their agents accredited to the board.
Indian cricketers, especially big names, have an entourage travelling with them for the IPL matches and reports suggest that during India’s last tour of Australia, there were at least 5 to 6 agents who were staying in the team hotel.
In the light of the spot-fixing scandal, the officials felt it’s time the BCCI framed some strict rules to keep tab on the players.
“The accreditation system was supposed to be introduced a couple of years back, but there were a lot of opposition from players, especially seniors,” said a BCCI official, who attended the working committee meeting here on Sunday.
The official said now that there are a lot of public and media scrutiny in the wake of spot-fixing allegations, cricketers have no choice than to adhere to their guidelines. “Regulating the agents was one of the main issue discussed at the meeting and finally it was decided to prepare the framework of how these player agents can be brought in the BCCI ambit which will help us to execute a better monitoring process,” the official added.
With agents breathing down on the necks of junior players who have the potential to make it big in Indian cricket, the official said, “the new regulation will keep them under check”.
“Some players who were part of the U-19 World Cup squad have already been signed up for promotional activities and they are looking for more talents who could reap rich rewards in the future,” he added.
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Bcci boss unsure if legalising the menace will help
Age Correspondent
Chennai, May 19
One of the raging debates after the alleged involvement of three Rajasthan Royals cricketers in a spot-fixing scandal is legalising the betting industry in India.
While reports suggest that the union sports ministry is mulling over the possibility of legitamise the betting in the country, BCCI president N. Srinivasan said he was not sure if it will work out in India.
“In other countries that have legalised betting, it has helped control corruption. But I do not know as far as India is concerned,” said Srinivasan.
Reacting to union minister Ajay Maken’s twitter statement that the BCCI should come under the ambit of the RTI Act, Srinivasan said the cricket body will continue to hold its own view on the issue.
“We are a private organisation. We neither get funds from the government and nor attached to it. So RTI will not apply to us.”