Mental strength as important as talent - Srikkanth

Former Indian opener Kris Srikkanth, who was appointed the new chairman of selectors on Saturday, has said his long-term goal was to identify the best team possible for the 2011 World Cup, while his immediate priority was to choose the best side for the series against Australia.

The series against Australia gets underway on October 9 in Bangalore and follows a 2-1 defeat in Sri Lanka where several senior members of the Test squad struggled for form. Srikkanth, however, said that the "mental strength" of the seniors would be critical against Australia.

"S Badrinath, Rohit Sharma and a few others have the talent but it is not ability alone that makes a player tick at the highest level," Srikkanth told Deccan Chronicle. "Mental strength is critical and cannot be taught, it has to be within, and the likes of Sachin [Tendulkar], Rahul [Dravid] and Anil [Kumble] have shown the way over a good period of time. It will be important to groom the youngsters under them.

"An eye for the future is equally important. Hard decisions might have to be taken in the future. The current Test team is one of the best India has ever had and it will not be easy replacing them."

The previous selection committee, headed by Dilip Vengsarkar, picked different squads for the Test and ODI formats, a policy which Srikkanth said was "spot on" because it required "different skill sets to excel in each form".

"With Twenty20 also coming into the mix it is crucial to identify talent for each form and nurture them," Srikkanth said. "The team has had some good results in the recent past and it's important to keep the good work going.

"I thank the BCCI for having faith in me and I am sure this new committee will meet the high expectations," Srikkanth said. "As a selector my accountability is even greater and I will strive hard and ensure the best Indian team takes field in every single game."

Vengsarkar backs Srikkanth

Dilip Vengsarkar, who was replaced by Kris Srikkanth as chairman of India's national selection committee, has pledged his "full support" to his successor. Vengsarkar told Cricinfo he will soon have a discussion with his 1983 World Cup team-mate to pass on information that will help in picking the Indian team for the home Test series against Australia.

Vengsarkar looked back "with satisfaction" at his stint as chief selector and defended the controversial ouster of senior players, including Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly, during his two-year tenure, saying those decisions have "yielded fruit".

"There was nothing personal against any player," Vengsarkar said. "And I am sure they understand that too. I have always done my job with courage and conviction, and nobody can question me on that. As you can see, all those decisions have yielded fruit now."

He said that those "tough" decisions, which "created a lot of new options for the Indian team", would not have been possible without the backing of his colleagues, Venkatapathy Raju, Sanjay Jagdale, Ranjib Biswal and Bhupinder Singh, all of whom were replaced today. "It's probably for the first time in Indian cricket that we have had selection committee meetings which saw no arguments, or heated words, or even voting of any kind."

The new selection committee is scheduled to meet next week to pick the team for the first Test against Australia starting in Bangalore on October 9. "Srikkanth called me after being appointed as the chairman," Vengsarkar said. "He said that he will call again to ask for my inputs to select the Indian team for the Australia Test series. And I have told him that he can call me anytime, day or night, and I will be there."

However, Vengsarkar refused to comment on the new eligibility rules for national selectors, especially the one that bars them from holding dual posts, which ruled him out of a third year at the helm. Vengsarkar is currently a vice-president of the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA).

Asked whether he was disappointed at being replaced, Vengsarkar said, "Why should I be? I am happy with whatever I have been able to contribute over the last two years. I will now take time off to relax, spend more time in my cricket academy, and will focus on a role in the media.

"I have enough reasons to look back with satisfaction. During the tenure of our selection committee, India has risen from No. 7 to No. 2 in the world rankings, and they are now very close to Australia," he said. "We have created a lot of new options for the Indian team. The India A team is now very strong, and we have watched and promoted youngsters across the board. The results are there for all to see, and I am sure the new selection committee will take it up from here."

New selectors (BCCI)

The challenges India's first paid selection committee face are as varied as its constituents. It is a wide palette of interesting former players: a dashing but reckless batsman, another who outgrew his technical limitations with extraordinary courage, a spinner who faded away as quickly as he came up on the scene, and two left-field choices.

Kris Srikkanth, the adventurous batsman from the 1980s, representing the South Zone, heads the committee. Reuniting with him will be a former national selector, North Zone's Yashpal Sharma, to form a different kind of team: 25 years ago they were together when India won the World Cup in England. Srikkanth played four Tests and 15 ODIs with another member of the committee, Narendra Hirwani, who makes his way from the Central Zone.

The three will assume one of the most crucial jobs in Indian cricket, in association with two surprise members - Surendra Bhave from West Zone and Raja Venkatraman from East Zone. None of the two has played for India. What this committee has going for them is that they will have the job for the next four years if they are good at it.

Cricinfo looks at what the team that will select the teams brings to the table.

Kris Srikkanth
Srikkanth, the cavalier opening batsman who was stripped of the captaincy in 1989 after he demanded that players' wages be increased, has been a successful India A and Under-19 coach. He was tipped to become the India coach in 1999, but Kapil Dev pipped him to the post. He was soon offered the selector's post, but refused. He was then appointed chief of India's pitches committee.

Later Srikkanth - "Cheeka" to his admirers - joined the media and has continued to air his views with his characteristic humour. He did court controversy during the 2003 World Cup when he said on air that "Ganguly should bat at No. 14", and Ganguly refused to accept his apology when Srikkanth called to patch up. After being made the chairman of selectors, Srikkanth has said that his immediate goal would be to choose a winning team for the Australia series, and also to concentrate on building a team that can win the 2011 World Cup.

Yashpal Sharma
Yashpal is the only man in the committee to have been a national selector before. His previous stint, though, is not one that he will be looking at for motivation. It coincided with the most acrimonious time in Indian cricket in the last decade, and ended with everybody bad-mouthing everybody.

Yashpal, who was a gritty middle-order batsman in the 80s and played two World Cups, took umbrage to what he felt was unfair treatment meted out to Ganguly and a few other players. He slammed Greg Chappell, then India's coach, for "targeting Ganguly, Virender Sehwag, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh". He also targeted Kiran More, the former chairman of selectors, for "not supporting him and taking sides when convenient".

Yashpal supported Ganguly through the infamous Chappell-Ganguly saga, but denied he had any hidden agenda. "Would I not have pushed for Sourav's inclusion in the one-day team too? Or, would I not have proposed that he be retained as captain for the Test team? I believe that Sourav has the track record and the performance to deserve a place in the Test side. I was among those who backed the idea of letting Rahul Dravid become Test captain as well," Yashpal said then.

Two years on, he can take comfort from the fact that all the choices he wanted to make then have been vindicated. Apart from Ganguly, who was recently kept out of the Rest of India team, the other three are key members of the Indian team now. When contacted now, though, he remained tight-lipped about his course of action and only said he was grateful for the opportunity and trust shown in him by the BCCI.

Raja Venkatraman
Some of the seniors in the Indian team might have found some backing in the form of Venkatraman, who represents East Zone in the committee. "There has to be proper succession planning; while the seniors have to make way for the youngsters, you cannot hurry the process," Venkatraman said. "The youngsters have to fit in the shoes of great players like Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, and the seniors.

"There cannot be too many changes as you need a settled team. I will obviously have to discuss with my colleagues - I know Srikkanth well - and am sure all of us will do our best to select the best possible team."

Venkatraman has had two stints as a junior selector for Bengal. He was also a member of the BCCI media committee in 2005, and had then gone on record with his ire against the omission of Ganguly, saying: "The selectors have committed blasphemy; no one can justify what they have done." He was also part of the BCCI museum committee in 2007-08.

An attacking left-hand middle-order batsman who played 41 first-class games for Bengal, Venkatraman rates the Ranji Trophy triumph in 1989-90 as his most memorable moment. A native of Palakkad in Kerala, born in Mumbai and brought up in Calcutta, he has been attached to the Prasoon Mukherjee camp in Cricket Association of Bengal, which is close to Sharad Pawar.

Surendra Bhave
Bhave, a prolific former opener for Maharashtra, has prior experience of being with many of the current Indian team. He was India's manager on last year's tour to Bangladesh, when he got on well with the team. "For a selector it is essential to know their [players'] mindset, and I had a little peek during that stint," Bhave said. "The fact they know me and that they thought this guy was decent will help me and the selection panel."

After his retirement from first-class cricket in 2001, Bhave has stayed in touch with the game as a coach and selector for Maharashtra and a member of India's junior selection committee. But he was taken by complete surprise when his name started came up as a candidate for the national selection committee.

Bhave believes the selectors can play a role as important as the coach and support staff. "I believe half the job is of the coach's, but as selectors we can try to choose the right mix," Bhave said. "My real vision is to make our team more consistent. Sometimes we come with an outstanding performance, and then like recently during the Test series in Sri Lanka, we falter. If you look at the graph of results there've been quite a few peaks and troughs."

An ideal selection, according to Bhave, is one that ensures a winning team and also has vision for the future. "In addition progressive planning is required, in terms of bringing in the youngsters at the right time and allowing them to prosper."

The challenge for this committee, whenever they bring about changes in the team, would be for the committee to be one voice. "Communication is a big thing for all five us, and I'm confident Kris Srikkanth is a very good leader of men and he will have a plan for all of us to work on."

Bhave doesn't think there is any harm in questioning the merits of the previous norm of selecting teams on match-by-match basis for home Test series, as opposed to picking one team for the whole series.

Narendra Hirwani
Of this committee, Hirwani is the most recent to have retired from competitive cricket. He retired from first-class cricket in 2006, after 23 years in the game. The passion with which he played domestic cricket - he played his last Test in 1996 but kept on toiling at home even after retirement. He has coached at the grassroots level for the last two years, working and travelling with city and club teams. He has been Air India's coach, and has also worked with the World Cricket Academy. When he came to know of his appointment as a selector, Hirwani was in Chandigarh, coaching in the JP Attray one-day tournament.

The reward for him has come fast - just two years after his retirement, unlike what he thought happened when he was playing. He had been vocal at times with his criticism of the selections, and ironically he will now sit at the other end of the table shortly after having called it a day.

Four-year term for India's new selection panel

India's newly-appointed national selectors, the first set to be paid by the BCCI, will be on a four-year contract which will be reviewed annually, according to Shashank Manohar, the board's new president. Manohar was confirmed as Sharad Pawar's successor at the annual general meeting in Mumbai, while Kris Srikkanth was appointed the new chairman of the selection panel.

The BCCI unveiled its new list of office-bearers at the meeting, and declared revenues of Rs 1000.14 crore (approximately US$215 million) for the previous year, with Rs 559.31 crore coming from media rights alone. While the board's revenues have jumped by 36% from the previous year, according to its annual report, its profit for 2007-2008 is Rs 303.15 crore.

The BCCI also approved the increased payments for domestic players, and has decided to set up an exclusive sports medicine centre.

While those were the major announcements, the handover was smooth and underlined the fact that the reshuffle was essentially a result of an arrangement that will continue to see Pawar, who is the ICC vice-president, remain firmly in control of Indian cricket, albeit in an advisory capacity. Manohar, said to be a hardliner, is a staunch loyalist of the federal minister.

In fact, the new arrangements that were formalised today resembled a game of musical chairs among administrators of the ruling group. N Srinivasan, the previous BCCI treasurer, is now its secretary, and takes over from Niranjan Shah, who has been accommodated as IPL vice-chairman. Sanjay Jagdale, the former selector, takes over from MP Pandove as the board's joint secretary; Pandove is now the treasurer.

Among other significant appointments, Lalit Modi, who heads the IPL and Champions League, will now also head the BCCI's influential fixtures committee that decides on venues and dates for international matches in India. Modi remains on the marketing committee, which is headed by Pawar.

Besides Srikkanth, the other national selectors are Yashpal Sharma (North Zone), Raja Venkat (East), Surendra Bhave (West) and Narendra Hirwani (Central). N Srinivasan, who takes over as secretary from Niranjan Shah, will be the convenor of the selection panel. MP Pandove replaces Srinivasan as treasurer while Jagdale is the new joint secretary. The five vice-presidents are Arun Jaitley (North Zone), Shivlal Yadav (South), Arindam Ganguly (East), Chirayu Amin (West), and Lalit Modi (Central).

The BCCI also named its junior selection committee, which will be chaired by Abey Kuruvilla, the former India bowler, and also includes Sanjeev Sharma, Sanjay Desai, Rajesh Bohra and Rajendra Singh Hans. The panel will be convened by Jagdale.

Shah has been appointed to a new post - the vice-chairman of the council. The governing council also includes Chirayu Amin, Farooq Abdulla, Rajeev Shukla, IS Bindra, Arun Jaitley, Sunil Gavaskar, Ravi Shastri and the Nawab of Pataudi.

The BCCI announced that cricketers who played the 2007-08 Ranji Trophy will earn Rs 37,000 per match day, up from Rs 25,000-26,000 in 2006-07. They also nominated umpires Amiesh Saheba and Suresh Shastri to the ICC panel.

The Indian board granted Affiliate Memberships to the Meghalaya Cricket Association, Nagaland Cricket Association, and Arunachal Cricket Association while Chhattisgarh State Cricket Association and Bihar Cricket Association were given Associate Membership.

Australia not seeking venue change yet

Cricket Australia will not push for the venue of the third Test to be changed after another bomb blast in Delhi just yet, says spokesman Peter Young. The already heightened level of security provided to the Australian team on their tour of India is likely to be increased and CA is waiting to hear back from its security experts before taking a decision.

"We are not due to go to New Delhi for the best part of a month and I would guess that unless our security advice changes I wouldn't expect our plans to change," Young said told the Sydney Morning Herald. "Certainly the briefings we have been getting have suggested no immediate need to change our processes. Our advice is that there is no specific concern about cricket."

Rajiv Shukla, the chairman of BCCI's media committee, was quoted as saying by Cricketnext: "We are in touch with the Home Ministry and the security provided to the Australian team will be increased. Advisory has been sent to all state governments hosting the Tests. For now, the Delhi Test in is on."

Saturday's blast was the second such instance in Delhi this month after five bomb blasts on September 13. The Australian team, however, will wait for instructions from Cricket Australia on further course of action.

"It's late in Australia and I don't think we will receive any instructions before Sunday morning," the media manager Matthew Slade told Times of India on Saturday. "But we are sure to have a security briefing in the morning. I'm not saying it's a concern at the moment, or that there could a request for a possible venue change, or other issues. We'll come to know soon."

The Australians have just completed a warm-up match in Jaipur. Their second practice match is against an Indian Board President's XI in Hyderabad from October 2 to 5.

Chappell helps Australia in India

Australia have enlisted the help of the former India coach Greg Chappell as they prepare to defend the Border-Gavaskar Trophy away from home. Chappell is travelling with the Australia squad as an assistant coach and he will pass on plenty of advice to the players and support staff about cricket and life in India.

"It's good to be involved this time," Chappell told the Herald Sun. "Obviously it's a transition period and always an exciting time.

"I'll have the opportunity to work with some of the young players. Just talk about the conditions in India, generally, will be part of the role, just what to expect in India, conditions, weather, food - all those different things.

"We'll be talking about the whole strategy involving bowling and batting in India. There will be discussions certainly with the coaching staff and probably with the individuals."

Chappell was the coach of India from 2005 to 2007 and still works with the Rajasthan Cricket Academy. The new role touring with Australia follows his appointment as the head coach at the Centre of Excellence in Brisbane.

"It's a role that the Centre of Excellence head does from time to time," Chappell said. "Tim Nielsen obviously did it with the team on various occasions when he was with the academy, so it's no different to the past. Some people will want to make it look different, but it's not."

Chappell's inclusion in the off-field staff will be a major boost for a squad that has only four men who have played a Test in India: Ricky Ponting, Matthew Hayden, Michael Clarke and Simon Katich. The Australians arrived in Jaipur on Monday and they will have two warm-up games before the Test series begins on October 9.

Ponting keen to improve average in India

Ricky Ponting has departed for India with a personal goal alongside his main aim of retaining the Border-Gavaskar Trophy: he is desperate to improve his average of 12.28 in India. Ponting said it was a void in his cricket resume and he was keen to rectify it in the coming weeks after Australia arrive in the country on Monday.

"I've had a couple of disappointing Test series [in India]. In 2001, I made next to no runs," Ponting said before the team's departure from Sydney. "The last series over there that we won, I broke my thumb and missed the first three Tests and came back for the last one, and that was the only one we lost."

Ponting's average in India is his lowest in any country; his aggregate of 17 runs in the three Tests in 2000-01 is his worst in any Test series. He will be attempting to fix his problem against an experienced India outfit.

Australia, on the other hand, have lost Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Adam Gilchrist, Damien Martyn, Justin Langer, Darren Lehmann, Michael Kasprowicz and Jason Gillespie from the previous tour to India in 2004. However, Ponting said taking a fresher squad might be a benefit.

"I think we made too much of the conditions in India a lot of the times before we get there," he said. "I think, quite often, the less that you talk about it and the more you get to understand it, the people and the conditions, the better off you are over there."

With the tour following an acrimonious and controversial series in Australia, Ponting hoped the upcoming contest would be played in the right spirit. "There's been a very healthy rivalry between India and Australia in one-day and Test cricket and our last few Test encounters have been very good and some very close results."

Ponting also said the decision to not tour Pakistan for the Champions Trophy had been the right one, following bomb blasts in Islamabad over the weekend. "It's devastating for the people involved," he said. "I mean, we'd be talking hypothetically of us being in the hotel, or England, or South Africa being in the hotel.

"I think what we've done, right the way through, is that we just have to listen to the advice from the experts, our Department of Foreign Affairs, and security advice. It is an absolute shame that things like this continue to happen in Pakistan because, believe it or not, as players, you want to ... play in all the conditions around the world."