By R.G. Vijayasarathy
Bangalore : Former Test batsman G.R. Viswanath faces a tough challenge in his bid to become president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) with the scion of the erstwhile Mysore royal family Sriakantadatta Wodeyar joining the fray.
Elections to the KSCA executive take place Sep 9 and will see another former Test batsman, Brijesh Patel, contesting for a third term as the association’s secretary.
Patel’s camp is backing Viswanath, while Wodeyar, who filed his nomination last week, is said to enjoy the backing of industrialist Vijay Mallya, actor Ambareesh and veteran cricketer Kasthuri Rangan, a former KSCA official.
The scenario appears strikingly similar to the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) elections three years ago when former India captain Ajit Wadekar, despite the backing of outgoing president Manohar Joshi, was defeated by veteran politician Sharad Pawar, who later went on to become the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
BCCI would be watching the Karnataka elections closely since Patel is known to be aligned with the opposition Jagmohan Dalmiya camp. The board’s pet project, the National Cricket Academy, is based in Bangalore’s M. Chinnaswamy Stadium and is run with substantial support from the KSCA.
Wodeyar has gone on the offensive, charging the present set of office-bearers with gross inefficiency in administration and misappropriation of funds. He has also charged that no efforts have been made by the Brijesh Patel-led administration to spread the game in the state.
“Beyond the city of Bangalore, cricket as a game has not grown despite a deep interest amongst the youngsters. The KSCA has more or less remained stagnant,” charges Wodeyar.
Patel’s group says non-cricketers do not have the interest of the game at heart.
“Politicians have a different agenda while contesting elections in a hugely popular and economically strong organisation like the KSCA. People should be wary of such vested interests,” said Patel.