“It has been a battle against the pandemic.

“...against the pandemic. Battle to stay relevant. Battle to keep the people together. It has been extremely tough for all of us, and the cricketers were no exceptions,” says BCCI president Sourav Ganguly in an interview.

Battle to stay relevant. Battle to keep the people together. It has been extremely tough for all of us, and the cricketers were no exceptions,” says BCCI president Sourav Ganguly in an interview.

Sourav Ganguly has had his fair share of dicult times during his playing days, but he has always found ways to navigate out of them. Now, as the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Ganguly must steer the ship in the most distressing times mankind has known. If sport is happening, the credit goes to the resilience of the players.

He is mindful that players make a lot of sacrices and that’s the reason he backs them in their pursuit of cricket. In this chat with Sportstar, Ganguly shares his thoughts on the challenges faced over the past 14 months and the forthcoming series in England, which he reckons will be tougher than the one against Australia.

The Covid19 situation is unlikely to improve anytime soon. So, what is the BCCI’S biggest immediate challenge? What are your thoughts on the situation?

The challenge has been there for a year now. Covid has hit us badly and we have all been struggling. Barring December 2020 to March 2021, it has been a battle against the pandemic. Battle to stay relevant. Battle to keep the people together. It has been extremely tough for all of us, and the cricketers were no exceptions.

How was the experience of hosting the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2020? Hosting the IPL in Dubai was a challenge, no doubt. Hosting domestic cricket was going to be a humongous task. Everything went o well until this massive and dreadful second wave of Covid came. You can imagine how dicult it has been to get cricket organised. We have the World Cup in ve months’ time. Till this pandemic remains, it is going to be some task to organise any cricket.

How did you get domestic cricket back on track?

Creating the biobubbles and sticking to the discipline were paramount. We had cooperation from all stakeholders. Covid cases were less in Decemberfebruary, and we could go ahead with some domestic cricket (women’s cricket, Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy). We had plans for the junior cricketers, too, for this July, but the second wave has left us with little choice but to cancel it.

The BCCI has been often accused of not giving women’s cricket its due...

But there is lot of women’s cricket happening. We had to cancel the women’s IPL and schedule it for Septemberoctober. Now the women’s team is leaving for England on June 2. They have a lot of cricket there. They have got England, Australia. Then South Africa comes here. Some of them are playing the 100ball cricket in England. Some are playing the Big Bash in Australia. Then they go to New Zealand for a series and then they play the World Cup.

Then why are people not convinced of your support to women’s cricket?

Half of them don’t know what is happening.

VIJAY LOKAPALLY

What to do? We have been living with this deadly virus. Other than men’s cricket, we had the women’s IPL. The South Africa women played here. It is a wrong perception that people have of us not promoting women’s cricket. What can I do? Our women are going to play Test cricket after eight years. They play a Test in Bristol and six ODIS (Oneday Internationals) and T20IS (Twenty20 Internationals). Would you still accuse me of not supporting women’s cricket? The West Indies will come and play in India. I think we are doing our best.

Are you not concerned about junior cricketers? They must be disillusioned since there has been no cricket for them for a long time...

How can we expose the young boys to this Covid atmosphere? Imagine a 16yearold away from home and their parents and staying in hotels for long periods. This virus is so dangerous. We write to the associations. We can’t have direct access to individuals. We keep the players motivated by speaking with them through their associations. They have a World Cup in January. Hopefully by October things will settle down. Covid has ruined so much of sport and life. We will compensate all the domestic players in JuneJuly. The junior players, umpires, scorers — they will all get their fees.

How did you manage to host the India

England series without any glitches and also the domestic tournaments?

Because the numbers were down, and we had just two teams. The biobubbles were there. We had 760 players in the biobubble (during the domestic games), but the key was that the Covid numbers were down across the country — 7,000 a day. Now we have more than four lakh daily cases.

Do you think you erred in continuing with the 2021 IPL? Could it have been called o earlier?

You can say that now in hindsight that the IPL should have been called o earlier. Mumbai and Chennai (legs) did not have cases. Only when the IPL reached Delhi and Ahmedabad did the cases rise. People will say a lot of things in any case. The English Premier League had so many people affected. But they could reschedule the matches. But you can’t do that with IPL. You stop it for seven days and it is done. Players go back home and then the process of quarantine starts from scratch.

The IPL and the BCCI have drawn criticism from many quarters for continuing with the tournament. What will the BCCI do to counter this negative perception? Do you think the criticism coming IPL’S way was justied?

There are dierent scenarios, and it is not always helpful to be wise after the event. We don’t have the advantage. As I said, we would have continued if there were no cases. We would have completed the IPL. The players were in the bubble and there were no crowds at the venues. Players were not getting infected. Once the players got aected, we called it o. Look at leagues going around the world. They have had Covid cases, but they have continued.

Is there a possibility of holding the remainder of the tournament in England after the World Test Championship (WTC) nal and before the England series? The WTC nal is scheduled to get over on June 22 and the rst Test starts on August 4. Or after the England series?

No. India is supposed to go to Sri Lanka for three ODIS and ve T20IS. There are lots of organisational hazards like 14day quarantine. It can’t happen in India. This quarantine is tough to handle. Too early to say how we can nd a slot to complete the IPL.

Your views on living inside a biobubble...

Bubble life is harsh; it’s the toughest thing. From last September, a majority of players around the world have been living inside a

bubble. There is no option. We can’t play cricket without the bubble.

Has it taken a toll on the mental health of the players?

I have spoken to the players. The best part is that a majority of them wanted to continue playing. Better o playing sport rather than getting stuck at home, getting worried about the pandemic. Playing takes your mind o Covid. Honestly, I have played the sport and I know how I am aected by this virus. Better to be on the eld than sit at home.

What are the reasons behind India’s recent success in the international arena?

The system is strong — domestic cricket, NCA (National Cricket Academy), coaches. The IPL is also a reason. Fairness of selection; only the best gets picked. There is transparency. The cricket system is robust. Fourday and T20 (cricket) are dierent, but the IPL does help. Gives condence that you can play at this level. Talent is important and adjustment is not a problem.

It has been said that Sourav Ganguly the BCCI president is not visible enough...

For 12 months, all of us have been dealing with the pandemic. I do speak whenever it is possible. I have dealt with the pressure. It has been a tough phase. I have gone past it. I am tter than before. I went to the hospital at the right time. Stents are not a big deal in the modern medical setup. Murali (M. Muralitharan) has three stents. My heart is absolutely ne. To be honest, I did not feel anything. I don’t feel anything now. The BCCI is doing good. It knows exactly what is going on.

India did well when you led the team, and it is now doing well when you are the BCCI president...

These are two dierent generations. This is a superb phase. Beating Australia in Australia was a tremendous achievement. We drew with Australia in Australia, beat England in England and Pakistan in Pakistan. Won in New Zealand, too. It was a glorious phase. This team is doing so well. I leave it at that. What happened in 2003 can’t be compared with 2021. I was involved both times — captain and now the BCCI president. I back the players, personally speak to them, listen to them. When they were in Australia, I would speak to the captain during every Test match. The results are because of the players. What Rishabh Pant did on the last day in Brisbane was incredible. He showed guts and character. The players relate to me because I have also played the game. Why can’t I speak to them? It is my job. I am supposed to speak to my players. We don’t hassle them. We are there to support them.

But what about the story of doctored pitches at home...

Not doctored. It is fun. If spinning is doctoring, what do I say? What about when the ball seams? Conditions are dierent in the subcontinent. India will go to England now and they will get green and seaming pitches. You must adjust.

What is your message to all the young people?

It is very tough, not just for the youth, seniors have also lost jobs. Hold on to it. It is the toughest time anyone of us has seen in our lives. Vaccines are here now, and things will resume. Hopefully, we will be back on track. The world has not seen anything like this. I would say play the ball on merit. Cricket will happen once the pandemic settles down.

Will you be travelling to England for the Test Championship nal?

It is good time to be with the family (now) — Dona (his wife), Sana (his daughter), my brother’s family. But I will go to England for the WTC. Get away for a while. It’s going to be a tough series. Tougher than Australia.

GETTY IMAGES Clearing the air: “It is a wrong perception that people have of us not promoting women’s cricket. What can I do? Our women are going to play Test cricket after eight years. They play a Test in Bristol and six ODIS and T20IS . Would you still accuse me of not supporting women’s cricket?” says Ganguly.

GETTY IMAGES Backing the boys: “What Rishabh Pant did on the last day (against Australia in the Test) in Brisbane was incredible. He showed guts and character. The players relate to me because I have also played the game. Why can’t I speak to them? It is my job. I am supposed to speak to my players. We don’t hassle them. We are there to support them,” the BCCI president says.

SPORTZPICS / IPL Responsible knock: Knight Riders captain Eoin Morgan cuts en route to an unbeaten 47 to steer his team home in a lowscoring contest against Punjab Kings in Ahmedabad. Knight Riders strolled through to its target of 124 with ve wickets and more than four overs to spare.

SPORTZPICS / IPL Through the gate! Ruturaj Gaikwad is dismissed bowled by Sunrisers’ legspinner Rashid Khan in the 13th over of Super Kings’ run chase of 172. Openers Gaikwad and Faf du Plessis had been galloping along until then, combining for a partnership of 129. The damage had been done; Super Kings promptly collected a sevenwicket win.

SPORTZPICS / IPL Close contest: Rishabh Pant grimaces after failing to take the Capitals home against Royal Challengers. Despite his best eorts (unbeaten 58, 48 balls) and his partnerships with Marcus Stoinis (22, 17 balls) and Shimron Hetmyer (unbeaten 53, 25 balls), Capitals lost by one run.

SPORTZPICS / IPL In redhot form: Faf du Plessis continued to sizzle for the Super Kings, scoring his third halfcentury in a row. Du Plessis was third on the list of leading rungetters this season when the IPL was indenitely postponed, with 320 runs in seven matches at an average of 64.

SPORTZPICS / IPL Among the runs: Prithvi Shaw has had an inspired run with the bat since he was demoted to domestic cricket after India’s tour of Australia. Although not as prolic as he was during the Vijay Hazare Trophy, he made useful contributions with the bat for the Capitals. His 41ball 82 against the Knight Riders gave his team a comfortable win.

SPORTZPICS / IPL The fulcrum: Opener Quinton de Kock celebrates after reaching 50 during Mumbai Indians’ run chase against Rajasthan Royals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. His unbeaten 70 (50 balls) won him the player of the match award.

SPORTZPICS / IPL Getting the big fish: Punjab’s leftarm spinner Harpreet Brar celebrates after the dismissal of Royal Challengers’ AB de Villiers. Harpreet accounted for the dismissals of two other giants — Virat Kohli and Glenn Maxwell.

SPORTZPICS / IPL Memorable outing: Capitals’ Lalit Yadav bowled an excellent spell gainst Knight Riders, picking 2 for 13 in three overs, and taking a catch to dismiss Rahul Tripathi.

SPORTZPICS / IPL The postman: K. L. Rahul dispatches the ball to its right address — beyond the boundary — in a masterful batting performance against Royals Challengers. He struck seven fours and ve sixes en route to an unbeaten 91 as Punjab Kings won by 34 runs.

IPL SPORTZPICS / Allround show: Mumbai’s Kieron Pollard appeals for the wicket of Chennai’s Ravindra Jadeja. Pollard shone with the ball before his reworks with the bat, taking two wickets for 12 runs in his two overs. Pollard upset CSK’S plans with a typical blitzkrieg (87, 34 balls) during a run chase of 219. In a thrilling nish, Mumbai Indians got home on the nal delivery of the contest.

SPORTZPICS / IPL In full flow: Rajasthan’s Jos Buttler plays an attacking stroke during his innings of 124 (64 balls) against Sunrisers. It was his maiden century in the IPL and his career best in T20s.

SPORTZPICS / IPL Mighty swing: The bat slips out of Pant’s hands during Capitals’ chase of 166 against Punjab. Backed by Shikhar Dhawan’s solid unbeaten 69, Capitals trotted home in 17.4 overs.