Picking selectors: An important job in Indian cricket, but who will take it?

Difficult, unusual work, lack of popularity, and a lot of blame when things go wrong - it's no wonder it's the last choice of most qualified candidates.

A cricket organization recently sacked an entire department.

In fact, it is an educated guess that the people in the department who were fired, none of them completed their terms, but the company advertised for their jobs. Advertising authenticity, a requirement mandated on the agency by an independent review following a corruption scandal and conflict of interest lawsuit, is the only surety anyone has on this development.

Who in their right mind would apply for this job?

Yes, you guessed right. If said organization can be so ruthless, it must follow that it is able to get away with being this way. Cricket is among the few legal recreational drugs in India and is sold by the BCCI.

Not only does BCCI operate in a monopoly market, if you are an ex-Indian cricketer who wants to work in cricket, you cannot be on the wrong side of it. It has an uncontrollable impact on the careers of commentators, coaches, media pundits, talent scouts and selectors. So, how hard can it be for this organization to replace one set of selectors with another?

Not much. Don't expect a beeline of suitable candidates. Many applications may be pouring in as we speak, but a job even more important than India's head coach will now be the last choice of the most qualified. A commentary job is a lot less work, and comes with a lot less accountability and a lot more exposure and glamour. And with regional language broadcasting, there are more commentary jobs than ever before. Coaching pays more, and there's often a public outcry if your contract isn't extended, let alone if you're unfairly fired.

Selectors, the punching bag for those who follow the game and those who play it, play an unpopular but important role. Even the easiest part of the job – selecting the first 15 in consultation with team management – is by its very nature unpopular. In a country with an abundance of talent, you're letting ten or more players down at any given selection meeting. You have to balance what's best for the team with keeping players who are close to selection motivated.

Your skill, your eye, your hard work really shines beyond picking the best 25 cricketers. You mark and prepare the next set of 25. Watching matches you don't see on TV, traveling across India to games where you don't always get replays. You tap into your informal network of junior selectors, coaches, match referees and umpires to add context to some numbers from matches you haven't seen. You manage the development of these players to a point where they become competitors and are noticed by national captains and coaches, who may not be able to keep track of all the performers in domestic cricket.

At least that's how the set-up worked until the A tours were curtailed during and after the Covid-19 pandemic. Prior to that the selectors prided themselves on being ready to replace most of the first-choice team. That system has broken down somewhat and post-Covid India has been among the slowest to re-establish developmental cricket.

India's selectors, whoever they are, should work closely with the team management and the BCCI secretary should sit in on their meetings•BCCI

Looking at the big picture, selectors make more important decisions than team management. They decide which direction the team takes in the long run. Of course they do this in conjunction with team management, but at least on paper the final call is theirs.

The "on paper" part is significant here. Recently sacked chairman of selectors Chetan Sharma and his team would agree. If they can be fired so easily, perhaps by the board president or secretary, is it really wise to have one of those officers (usually the secretary) sit at every election meeting and the other (usually the president) approve every election?

Just imagine this job description: keep integrity beyond reproach, travel a lot, stay invisible, make important decisions on which the future of the team and many other players rest, be unpopular, get paid a tenth of what the coach gets, expose yourself to people who Dismiss who owns all the power and has little formal accountability and no public support while you're at it.

It's no wonder that among retired cricketers, sharp minds and bodies choose other paths as much as possible. And the latest turn of events has done nothing to make the task more interesting at a time when India should be desperate to get its developmental measures back on track. Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman in N with the senior team

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

FAQ

How can I become a selector of Indian cricket team?

Also, candidates should have retired from the game at least five years ago. A person who has been a member of any Cricket Committee (as defined in the BCCI Rules and Regulations) for a total of five years shall not be eligible to be a member of the Men's Selection Committee.

Who are the BCCI selectors?

The Chetan Sharma-led panel, along with Debashis Mohanty, Harvinder Singh and Sunil Joshi, was a month shy of completing two years as selectors. According to BCCI's new constitution, a person can serve on the cricket committee for up to five years.

Who are the 5 selectors of the Indian cricket team?

As of 18 November 2022, Chetan Sharma was the senior chief selector and Debashish Mohanty, Harvinder Singh and Sunil Joshi were the members. The panel was dismissed following the Indian men's team's failed tour of the 2022 T20 World Cup.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

IMPORTANT VIDEO