ICC World T20 2016: Chairman of Selectors Sandeep Patil hurt after he was asked to leave the President's Box
The chairman of the selection committee of Team India and former India cricketer Sandeep Patil is deeply hurt after experiencing an embarrassing time during India’s first game in the ICC T20 World Cup 2016 against New Zealand in Nagpur on March 15, 2016.
Also read: ICC T20 World Cup 2016: Australia vs Bangladesh- Where to watch live, match prediction, team news and live streaming information
According to a report in The Hindu, Chairman of selectors Sandeep Patil and his colleague Vikram Rathour were reportedly asked to leave the President’s Box of the Jamtha-based Vidarbha Cricket Association stadium in Nagpur, which is also the headquarters of present Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Shashank Manohar’s home association.
It is also reported that two top-level Board of Control for Cricket in India officials, World T20 chief co-ordinator Prof. Ratnakar Shetty and tournament director M.V. Sridhar were also present in the President’s box when the incident took place.
Patil has vowed not to visit any of the venues in the ICC World T20 2016
According to the report, it can also be known that after the incident a bemused Patil went to his hotel room to watch the match on television while Rathour sat amongst the spectators to watch the game. When Patil was contacted he refused to comment and maintained silence.
However, sources close to the selection committee chairman gave a hint that a humiliated Patil has vowed not to visit any of the venues to watch a match in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2016.
It is reported that Sridhar has issued an instruction to all the stadium officials to accommodate the national selectors during the world T20 matches. The shoddy incident involving Patil and Rathour surely has acted as an eye-opener for the tournament officials.
The selection committee led by Patil have watched India's domestic and international matches religiously and somehow it’s part of their job to monitor the team they have picked. The incident was truly a blemish on the part of the organisers and they should have been more careful dealing with such people.
Sandeep Patil used to be a flamboyant cricketer in his playing days. He had a flair to his batting and he contributed efficiently to India’s victorious world cup campaign in 1983. As a coach, he rose to fame when he guided the Kenyan national cricket team to the World Cup semifinal in 2003. It was truly a remarkable achievement.
Patil as the Chairman of Selectors has done a decent job. It was his committee which took the calculated risk of including a raw talent like Jaspreet Bumrah in the Indian limited-overs squad. That move is slowly paying dividends as Bumrah is gradually becoming Dhoni’s go-to man in the death overs.
The incident surely was a shabby one and it left Patil disgruntled for sure.