Let’s bring commitment and professionalism to our cricket
This is an open letter to the Chairman, Cricket Board:
I am just completing 70 years of my life and have been a cricket player from the age of 11. I was not selected to play for Ceylon but I have seen every moment of development of cricket in Sri Lanka. I retired as a General Manager of one of the Blue Chip companies in the country.
I give below a few suggestions to bring discipline to the team.
1.The cricketers are professionals who are highly paid.
In private companies there are highly paid managers , executives who take responsibilty for the growth of the company. At the end of the year we do a personal appraisal and arrive at the percentage performance.
If they do not come to the expected level, their bonus is reduced.
Further when they do not perform on their daily routines due to their negligence, (absence , poor performance due to irresponsible acts at work, bad behaviour ) show cause letters are issued and pay cuts are introduced.
My question....do you have a yearend performance appraisals system?
2. What I see in the cricketers, is that they are sure of their match fee even if they do not perform.
So they have lost commitment. Look at the last two 20/20 matches in India.
Do you think they were committed? Did you see them as professionals? No they were like a school Under 12 team.
Are you thinking of deducting their match fee?
3. Don’ t blame the coach. “You can take an ass to the water but you cannot make it to drink”
Only way is to keep the ass without water for 10 days. Then the ass will drink.
4. Captaincy is performance, intelligence, staff handling, commitment, ability to analyze situations..
Was it there at the India tour ? Here again I am not blaming the Captain but the people who appointed him.
Mr.Chairman, take some stern action quickly, otherwise we will continue to have the cricketers having their own way but enjoying the money they receive.
Take your decisions the way we do in our private companies.
Don’t let people who have never held a bat in their life appoint the teams.
Produce a team with commitment and show the world that, even if we lose we give a fight professionally.
C.Peiris Via email