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New Delhi, Former India opener Virender Sehwag has lashed out at the selectors for picking players under the influence of the “people in power”.
Sehwag, who recently retired from international cricket, added that the state associations were not being run efficiently. Sehwag, who recently shifted to Haryana from Delhi in domestic cricket, said: “It’s not just Delhi. There are other associations which have problems.
“You need to change things at the U-19 and U-16 levels because that’s the problem area. If you pick overage players, it is a problem that needs to be identified,” he said.
Sehwag said that he could not become a selector as that would be conflict of interest — he has opened a school where young cricketers would be groomed.
“I have my Sehwag International School (in Haryana). So I cannot be a selector; but if any association wants me to be a part of it, I would love to do that. There are other cricketers who have a reputation but they are not getting the opportunity to be a part of the selection panels,” he said.
“What is happening is that the guys in power introduce names to the selectors and the selectors then act according to these people’s whims.”
Talking about the domestic structure, he said that the gap between the matches should be increased.
“I played three seasons and the gap between the matches is three-four days. You play eight games in a row. You play One-dayers immediately after that and it is not fair to the fast bowlers. The batsmen and spinners can manage.
“That’s how Mohit Sharma got injured and he could not be a part of the Indian team. That’s the problem. They want to finish first-class cricket as soon as possible instead of giving it more time.
“I would give a suggestion to BCCI. Give respect to domestic cricket and give the same rest period as in international cricket. You can start in October and finish in March or February.”
IPL a platform for youngsters
“I think it is a platform for a young Indian player. If you look at 2000-01, when I joined the team, we took 20 games to get used to international cricket. Now, someone like Shikhar Dhawan, who has played in IPL, is used to the pace, and he scored a 180-odd on Test debut against Australia. When Yuvraj and I joined, our game was not great and we took 20-25 games to score a 150 or 100. Look at KL Rahul. He went to Australia and got a hundred in his second Test. That’s the impact IPL has had on a domestic player.
“There has been the negative impact of spot-fixing and match-fixing, but it is the individual player’s responsibility to play fairly,” he said.
Asked if he would have liked to captain India more, Sehwag said, “I did captain India in all three formats. When Rahul (Dravid) resigned, I was not a part of the team. If I had been a part, probably I could have captained for a couple of years. I could have continued had I done well as a captain then, but it is all about opportunities. Dhoni was the right guy and he did a great job as captain. The important thing is that we won the World Cup and became the No. 1 Test team.”
“We (Dhoni and he) had a good relationship. People complained that I didn’t thank him (during his retirement speech) but I thanked all my colleagues. So that includes him. We went to London to play a charity game this year and had a good chat. That shows that we are friends because only friends have a chat, or else you mind your own business.”
Asked about his future plans, he said, “I would love to be a coach, mentor or batting consultant. If any IPL team wants me to be a mentor or a batting consultant, I would love to do that. I can share my knowledge with the youngsters.”
