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India in disarray ahead of Australia Tests
If the heat, dust and spinning wickets do not get to the Australians, the shock of watching the mess that is Indian cricket surely will.
If the heat, dust and spinning wickets do not get to world champions Australia, the shock of watching first-hand the mess that is Indian cricket surely will.
The tourists have seen intrigue, injury, power-play, court battles and total confusion reign in the rival camp in the six days they have been here for the highly-anticipated Test series.
The national team is in poor form, star player Sachin Tendulkar is injured and officials are fighting each other in the few spare moments they have from a messy court battle over multi-million dollar television rights.
With six days left before the first Test in Bangalore on October 6, there is no guarantee the series will be telecast live - or even if it will be played at all.
"Indian cricket is in a mess with no solution in sight," said Raj Singh Dungarpur, a well-known administrator and former chief of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
The cash-rich cricket board is divided down the middle following Wednesday's acrimonious presidential elections which saw outgoing chief Jagmohan Dalmiya's candidate, Ranbir Singh Mahendra, edge out heavyweight politician Sharad Pawar by one vote.
The conduct of the Australia series depends on a verdict from the Supreme Court on the petition by Zee Telefilms challenging the BCCI's decision to cancel television rights which the network insists were awarded to it for four years for a whopping $308 million.
The Court, India's highest judicial authority, will have to make an early call - probably this week - on the BCCI's plea that it be allowed to make separate arrangements for the telecast of the series.
