IND VS ENG, 5TH TEST
Monday 19 December 2016
Sunday 18 December 2016
Anurag Thakur - The accidental administrator
Anurag Thakur - The accidental adminstrator
Photo courtesy: Anurag Thakur
Life, for some, is best enjoyed with surprises.
It was 6:30 in the evening and just as the sun was threatening to set and blind the sight of the Himalayas from the horizon, my driver gave me an ultimatum. "If he goes for one more rally, I'm returning home."
While our wait kept stretching from one rally to another, Anurag Thakur announced to the 60-people gathering at Chabutara village, "I've received a request for building a playground. The request is approved," and the crowd broke into a rapturous applause. "But," he cautioned, "I want the village head to take an NOC from the state government. I already have 12 cases running against me, can't afford to take the 13th case. I'm fed up, all my money is being spent on the lawyers."
The driver's threat was legit. Having followed Thakur's cavalcade all through the day, his body was giving up. Mine too. While I had a bait to stay on, he gave up. For a period of 14 hours, Thakur rushed from one village to another, delivered one-hour speeches and answered questions of those who came up to him personally. While he was in his car, he would reply to text messages and call back those who had tried reaching him while he was busy. Not even a minute of rest. And yet, at 11 PM, with the day coming to an end, he had a spring in his step as he raced down the staircase telling Anupam, his personal assistant, "woh mere liye ruke hain."
He has gained sort of a star status in his hometown of Hamirpur. Apart from maintaining his conventionally good looks courtesy spending some extra time in front of the mirror adjusting his hair strands, his approachable nature and a solid work profile as a politician has helped him gain admiration. Most importantly, he has brought cricket to Himachal Pradesh in a way nobody could. It's been seen as a big deal by the people of the state to have a person among them heading world cricket's most powerful body. The big deal is apparent, as they celebrate with him, cheer him on in the stadium and mob him as soon as he gets off his car. "For a small state which never had representation at the international level, to have one of them heading the best sports body in the country is a matter of great pride. They feel proud that one of them has reached there. From a small village called Samirpur in Hamirpur district if you reach out to become the BCCI President, it is a big honour for the state. They take a lot of pride in that."
It made me wonder for quite a bit - did he set it up for me to notice his 'hardworking' avatar and 'popular' appeal? Or was it just another day at work for him? After all, he had offered to do the interview in his 'free time'. On my insistence, it happened the other way.
"Don't you feel the need to have a bodyguard?" I ask as he keeps getting mobbed at every corner.
"Who needs bodyguards in Himachal? They are all my people. Those who had bodyguards were assassinated. I'm safe without them."
The challenging part of his job is the fact that he can't be loose while making statements, either to the media or the public. To be thinking constantly of what is being uttered and understanding the repercussions of the words being spoken is a requirement of the job, and not necessarily a skill.
Photo courtesy: Anurag Thakur
Besides being the President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), he is also a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), elected for the third time straight from the constituency of Hamirpur. Politics isn't new to him. He is the son of Prem Kumar Dhumal, a former two-time chief minister of Himachal Pradesh. Yet, a career in politics wasn't a dream he was chasing.
"What we had seen as children was that our father had dedicated his life towards the state of Himachal Pradesh. We were the sufferers as kids. He remained away from us. We grew up with our uncle. So my mother used to tell me, 'don't join politics, because the family suffers.' I was never inclined towards politics, I was always into cricket," he says.
"In the Under 16 when I was the captain, I got out for 94 and 76 and I was not selected for North Zone. I felt bad that I was not picked and the selectors said 'No centuries'. My seniors told me that if you don't convert 94 and 76 into hundreds, nobody will speak about you. That is why you would see those big knocks in Under-19."
But for all the sacrifices, there are also limitless perks that comes to those from political families. The vulgar power is the most prized of those benefits. 'Tu jaanta nahi mera baap kaun hai', a popular phrase thrown around to get away from almost all unlawful activities, is largely used in the northern parts of the country to display that power. Thakur, like most politicians, claims never to have said it. He, however, backs it with a more convincing argument. Having been brought up in Punjab, he says, "When my father was the chief minister of Himachal Pradesh, I hardly visited the state five times in a year. I stayed away from the glamour of power, never misused it. If you see, my name is Lt Anurag Singh Thakur, my father's name is Prof Prem Kumar Dhumal. My father was a professor, his surname was Dhumal. I wanted to have my own identity from Class 9, I never went for his surname.
"You will never see that in Indian politics. I was so proud of my father, I never wanted to misuse his name to grow in the field of cricket as a player or never wanted achieve anything in life using his name. Whatever I have achieved and I'm here is because of the education and sanskaar given by my family.
"My mother is very simple, very down to earth. Nobody will understand that, a chief minister's wife travelling in a rickshaw. I am a three-time MP, BCCI president, I still travel by a bus. On Wednesday, I'll be leaving in a bus to Delhi. So there is a huge difference in the way we live."
Thakur's own convoy stopped time and again to allow the state transport buses and private vehicles to pass on the hilly terrains of Hamirpur. It was in contrast to a common sight in many parts of the country where roads get blocked to allow politicians and their convoys to pass through.
"My father does not use even sirens. As chief minister also he never used sirens. He used to go silently." For all his frank admission, even he had the red light glowing pretty bright over his car.
Photo courtesy: Anurag Thakur
"You know, this is the same hotel, way back in 2000," Thakur says recalling how he entered cricket administration while we sit for dinner at a hotel in Hamirpur.
He had quit cricket in 1995 and was busy in running his family's business in Jalandhar. "People of Himachal Pradesh came to see me and told me that you have to help us out by making a guy from Hamirpur the President of Himachal cricket. So I drove down four hours to make a guy the President of Himachal cricket," he said without wanting to name the person in question.
"He was sleeping in his house," he said paving way to some dramatization in the narration. "He woke up and told his wife 'Vidya, give us four cups of tea' and she shouted, 'Jahan se roz mangwate ho, wahi se mangwao'. I was like 'what the hell is this?' So I told him, 'I'll wait for you in the hotel, we'll meet there and talk'."
As the talks ensued, Thakur agreed to arrange for votes in his favour, but had one request in return. The request was to make him a member of Hamirpur district. The request, however, was declined. "Others felt bad that here I am trying to make him the president and he is not even ready to make me a district member. So the people turned around and they told me become the President."
Thakur was unanimously voted into power as the President of HPCA in 2000. "Back then, there was one typewriter, seven chairs and one almari and not even a proper ground." It wouldn't be an overstatement to say that a new era ushered in Himachal cricket once he took over.
The most popular story among his early days in the administration remains the only first-class match he played in his career, against Jammu and Kashmir. He selected himself to play in the match, and returned scoring a duck in his only innings. His other exploits in the match included two wickets he bagged, the first of which was taken off his maiden first-class delivery. It is believed that he played the match only to become eligible for the post of junior national selector. Denying the allegations, he said, "I was never interested (in becoming the junior selector). If I was, I could have become the BCCI vice president in 2001 when Mr Bindra offered me a chance. I did not take any position with BCCI till the year 2011. I wanted to focus on Himahcal Pradesh cricket and I did well here."
"So why did you retire after just one match?"
"I've not retired, I can still play," he kids around before offering an explanation. "I wanted to tell them to play positive cricket, be positive in life rather than negative. If you're playing to lose, you can lose otherwise as well. So I played that game, that was the last game of the league. I just wanted to tell them that we have to be positive on the field. I took the first wicket off the first ball. Nobody spoke about that. But I got out for zero and that happens in the game of cricket. If I wanted to play cricket and make a living out of it, I could have played for the next few years. In the next year we qualified, but nobody talked about that. In five years the same team became the champion in the plate group. So that was the difference we created in one game."
Irrespective of how believable that sounds, it is Thakur's version.
Photo courtesy: Anurag Thakur
His love for cricket grew when Pakistan played a Test match in Jalandhar's Burlton Park. The match, which took place a few months after India's historic 1983 World Cup win, ended in a drab draw. But the experience of witnessing the atmosphere of an India-Pakistan match stayed with him.
"There were lot of slogans about Reena Roy and Pakistan opener (Mohsin Khan). I saw a lot of people love it, and bunk their school to watch that match. The atmosphere around it was incredible.
"The love only grew when the cricket team in our school were recognised as champions in front of everyone in the prayer hall. When it would be announced that we became champions and our students have played for the state, you see the kind of recognition given by the DAV society, I liked that. That recognition was a big thing. So it was always there that these players stand out. That is how I started playing."
What is lesser-known about him are his cricketing credentials, which are quite decent. He played Under-16 and Under-19 for Punjab and North Zone, and graduated to become a part of India's Under-19 side. He played against Michael Vaughan when the England Under-19 side toured India in 1993. His selection in the Under-19 side came at the back of four centuries in the Cooch Behar Trophy 1992/93 - 159 against Haryana, 100* against Himachal Pradesh, 159* against Haryana and 196 against Karnataka.
"In the Under 16 when I was the captain, I got out for 94 and 76 and I was not selected for North Zone. I felt bad that I was not picked and the selectors said 'No centuries'. My seniors told me that if you don't convert 94 and 76 into hundreds, nobody will speak about you. That is why you would see those big knocks in Under-19."
In the 1992/93 season of Cooch Behar Trophy, he was the third highest run-getter. It was a season where the likes of VVS Laxman, Vijay Bharadwaj, S Sriram, Amol Muzumdar, Hrishikesh Kanitkar, Shib Sundar Das, Sadagoppan Ramesh and Pankaj Dharmani, among other cricketers also played the tournament, and scored less than him. He was the third highest run-getter in that season, scoring 694 runs (4 centuries) in 7 matches (12 innings) at an average of 106.
He spent some time in the reserves for Punjab in the Ranji Trophy side, twice missing a chance of playing in the XI. "Amit Sharma and I scored equal number of runs, but he got to play the semi final, I could not. I was called for the final, but Pankaj Dharmani was made to play the final. I think that was part and parcel of the game of cricket. That is what I learnt. One should not blame others. You should try and improve your performance. That is what I learnt from cricket and that is what is helping me in every aspect of my life."
Photo courtesy: Anurag Thakur
Even as his progress as a cricketer stalled beyond a certain point, his progress as an administrator was rapid. He does make it a point to tell, "I have been an administrator for 16 years" every time the question of his pacey progress in becoming the BCCI president is pointed out. He is right, but the fact is only one person younger than him has managed to assume the most prized seat in Indian cricket administration in its 86-year old history.
What cannot be taken away from him is the credit for the development of cricket in Himachal Pradesh. You would look at the state of the game in Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir or most states in the country and not be bothered as to why there is no progress. Himachal Pradesh could have been like one of those states, and crib over the challenges at hand. But in the 16 years since taking over the President's position of Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association, he has built an international level stadium, increased coaching camps, started academies for girls and boasts of competitive teams at various age-group levels. In those years, Himachal Pradesh also managed to emerge champions of Ranji Trophy plate group, and produced two cricketers to represent India at the international level - Sushma Verma and Rishi Dhawan.
The HPCA Stadium isn't the only one in the state. There are stadiums with good quality playing conditions being built in other parts of the state such as Una, Bilaspur and Amtar. "I want to have a stadium in each district, I want to see Himachal Pradesh among the top three cricket associations in India. I want to create more and more players for Indian cricket. Not only one Rishi Dhawan and one Sushma Verma. More and more," he stresses.
What all of Thakur's work has showed is, with intent, everything is possible. It didn't take long for the BCCI bosses to notice that. His growing political clout clubbed with a strong resume as the President of HPCA, made him one of the popular figures to join hands with. In 2011, he was elected as the joint secretary of BCCI, his maiden stint with the world's richest cricket board.
However, two years down the line, the spot-fixing scandal in the Indian Premier League shook Indian cricket yet again. While secretary Sanjay Jagdale and treasurer Ajay Shirke quit their respective posts with immediate effect, President N Srinivasan refused to leave his seat. The Tamil Nadu-strongman faced criticisms from all corners for holding on to his post while his son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan was accused of being involved in the murky dealings. While the BCCI members and Indian cricketers refused to give their opinion on the issue to the media, Thakur was a rarity. He made his views that Srinivasan should quit, public.
"I simply told Mr Srinivasan that 'Mr Jagdale and Mr Shirke have resigned. Only two office bearers are there - one is me as the joint secretary and one is you as the President. You must step aside to get a fair probe done, so that you come clean on that'. He has done a lot for Indian cricket. So there was no need to hang in there.
"If he would've listened at that time, that would've helped Indian cricket. I was not against Mr Srinivasan, I had only asked him to step aside. He may have felt bad at that time, but it was in the interest of Indian cricket."
It is a fact reiterated by several BCCI office bearers that everyone in the board and association are like 'brothers'. Two people fight one day and become pally the next day. But the rule is, nothing goes outside the house. Thakur too agrees that it is true.
"So didn't you fear breaking the 'house rules' and making your views public?"
"This is not my bread and butter. I'm not here to earn anything out of this, I'm here to contribute. I wanted to be loyal to the board rather than anyone else."
In 2014, with it becoming clear that Srinivasan won't get a position in the board, he offered to support Thakur for the President's post. Instead, the BJP strongman declined the offer, and instead chose shake hands with the rival camp and settle for the secretary's position. He beat Sanjay Patel by one vote to secure the post. "When I contested for the secretary's post, I knew it was going to be tight. We decided to contest the election one day in advance. There was no planning to contest the election. We arrived on 28th night after the budget and 29th was the nomination. Where did we have the time to plan? I just happened."
He refuses to accept that there were closed door planning in place. "If it had to be behind the door, I could have become the President. I was offered, I could have become President."
"Then why didn't you?"
"The board needed a senior person as the head at that point of time. We had Mr (Jagmohan) Dalmiya, who was seasoned and very reputed. He was the best in the interest of Indian cricket."
Photo courtesy: Anurag Thakur
During his run as the secretary, several reforms were introduced, most notably contracts for the women cricketers. Not surprisingly, he also ensured that small towns such as Ranchi and Dharamsala got more international matches. The might of his influence in the board became quite apparent when Dharamsala was chosen as the venue to host a high-profile match of ICC World T20 2016 - league match against Pakistan.
An elated Thakur got a few more finer touches added to the HPCA Stadium, including the construction of a new room to shoot the pre and post match studio shows in readiness of the big matches. However, to destroy his grand plans, the Congress government in the state refused to provide the required security for the matches. Meanwhile, in West Bengal, where state elections were being held, chief minister Mamata Banerjee used the high-profile cricket matches as a perfect political tool to entice the voters. So while Thakur was making desperate diplomatic attempts to convince his rivals, Cricket Association of Bengal President Sourav Ganguly was celebrating the coming of the big clashes in the cricket-loving city of Kolkata.
"I was kind of disappointed because it was a very big moment for Himachal cricket, and the people missed out on being a part of that."
Running simultaneous to Thakur's rise in power was the Supreme Court's eagerness to ask for reforms in the Indian cricket board. As it turned out, the Supreme Court ordered the BCCI to implement all the recommendations of the Lodha Committee, barring one. Shashank Manohar, who became the president following the demise of Dalmiya, quit his post, citing that his 'conscience' didn't allow him to continue as BCCI's chief.
"I want to have a stadium in each district, I want to see Himachal Pradesh among the top three cricket associations in India. I want to create more and more players for Indian cricket. Not only one Rishi Dhawan and one Sushma Verma. More and more."
Nonetheless, a smooth transition took place. Thakur managed to get all the six East Zone associations to unanimously vote him to power as the President and get Ajay Shirke, his close aide, to be elected as the secretary - a post vacated by Thakur.
He wasted little time in getting six new venues to host matches in the 13-Test long season, Dharamsala being one of them. Yet again, he is excited. He isn't willing to give away how HPCA is planning to make a grand show in hosting their maiden Test, but says there is something big in store. He is also confident that the state government wouldn't spoil his plans this time around. "I don't think that will be the case this time, because they also realised there was an anti-government sentiment when they didn't support such big events. So they will support us this time."
Having been busy with cricket administration, family business and politics all his life, he didn't have time to live up to the legacy of his grandfather and great grandfather - both of whom served in the Indian Army. In 2016, even that wish was fulfilled as he went on to become a commissioned officer in the Indian Territorial Army.
"So what's your ultimate goal in life?"
He turns philosophical as the conversation nears an end. "My dream was always to play (cricket) for India. I could not achieve my dream. But destiny as I said, I came here to make someone else the president and I became the president. I was never interested in politics, I was forced to get into politics. Life is not in your hand. So you never know what is going to happen."
Reactions: This has been a frigging remarkable game of cricket
Reactions: This has been a frigging remarkable game of cricket
•
In the end, though, it was fitting to have Steve Smith execute the last run-out to seal the win, given his fumbles with catches yesterday. © AFP
A remarkable Test match between Australia and Pakistan comes to and end with the hosts prevailing in the end by 39 runs on Monday (December 19). Pakistan kept Australia on the field for 145 overs to be bowled out for 450, that, after having been 173 for 5. Pakistan showed immense pluck at the Gabba, and almost pulled off a world-record chase thanks to Asad Shafiq's brilliant 137 with the lower order for company.
In the end, though, it was fitting to have Steve Smith execute the last run-out to seal the win, given his fumbles with catches yesterday. Australia take the first Test and lead the three-match series 1-0. True beauty of Test cricket.
Australia vs Pakistan, 1st Test - Live Cricket Score, Commentary
Australia vs Pakistan, 1st Test - Live Cricket Score
Series: Pakistan tour of Australia, 2016-17 Venue: The Gabba, Brisbane Date & Time: Dec 15-Dec 19, 01:00 PM LOCAL
full score
Australia won by 39 runs
Australia 1st Innings429-10 (130.1)
Batsman
R
B
4s
6s
SR
Extras
13
(b 0, lb 5, w 1, nb 7, p 0)
Total
429
(10 wkts, 130.1 Ov)
Fall of Wickets
70-1 (David Warner, 23.1), 75-2 (Usman Khawaja, 24.4), 151-3 (Matt Renshaw, 43.2), 323-4 (Steven Smith, 99.4), 334-5 (Nic Maddinson, 103.3), 342-6 (Matthew Wade, 109.4), 354-7 (Mitchell Starc, 111.5), 380-8 (Josh Hazlewood, 118.6), 380-9 (Peter Handscomb, 119.1), 429-10 (Nathan Lyon, 130.1)
Bowler
O
M
R
W
NB
WD
ECO
Pakistan 1st Innings142-10 (55)
Batsman
R
B
4s
6s
SR
Extras
4
(b 0, lb 3, w 1, nb 0, p 0)
Total
142
(10 wkts, 55 Ov)
Fall of Wickets
6-1 (Azhar Ali, 4.1), 43-2 (Babar Azam, 19.4), 43-3 (Younis Khan, 19.5), 48-4 (Misbah-ul-Haq, 26.5), 54-5 (Asad Shafiq, 28.3), 56-6 (Sami Aslam, 29.4), 66-7 (Wahab Riaz, 33.5), 67-8 (Yasir Shah, 34.1), 121-9 (Mohammad Amir, 50.4), 142-10 (Rahat Ali, 55)
Bowler
O
M
R
W
NB
WD
ECO
Australia 2nd Innings202-5 (39)
Batsman
R
B
4s
6s
SR
Extras
7
(b 2, lb 4, w 0, nb 1, p 0)
Total
202
(5 wkts, 39 Ov)
Did not Bat
Starc, Hazlewood, Lyon, Bird
Fall of Wickets
12-1 (David Warner, 2.2), 24-2 (Matt Renshaw, 5.4), 135-3 (Steven Smith, 29.4), 188-4 (Usman Khawaja, 36.5), 199-5 (Nic Maddinson, 37.5)
Bowler
O
M
R
W
NB
WD
ECO
Pakistan 2nd Innings450-10 (145)
Batsman
R
B
4s
6s
SR
Extras
7
(b 0, lb 5, w 2, nb 0, p 0)
Total
450
(10 wkts, 145 Ov)
Fall of Wickets
31-1 (Sami Aslam, 11.3), 54-2 (Babar Azam, 26.2), 145-3 (Azhar Ali, 59.6), 165-4 (Misbah-ul-Haq, 69.5), 173-5 (Younis Khan, 74.3), 220-6 (Sarfraz Ahmed, 87.3), 312-7 (Mohammad Amir, 106.4), 378-8 (Wahab Riaz, 122.3), 449-9 (Asad Shafiq, 144.2), 450-10 (Yasir Shah, 145)
Bowler
O
M
R
W
NB
WD
ECO
Match Info
Match
Aus vs Pak, 1st Test, Pakistan tour of Australia, 2016-17
Date
Thursday, December 15, 2016 - Monday, December 19, 2016
Toss
Australia won the toss and opt to bat
Time
03:00 AM GMT
Venue
The Gabba, Brisbane
Umpires
Ian Gould, Richard Illingworth
Third Umpire
S Ravi
Match Referee
Ranjan Madugalle
Australia Squad
Playing XI
Bench
Pakistan Squad
Playing XI
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