Rhiti and Dhoni sitting in a tree, M-I-N-T-I-N-G. So, Captain Cool's dirty laundry is being shown to the public. At least for now, it's only the shirt and pant. The undergarments haven't been strewn about in public yet. Meaning, he isn't in that much trouble but a poor performance in the Champions Trophy and the lit match beneath his bottom could turn into 'in-freakin-ferno.' As they say, loss is the perfect fuel for a raging mob or at least for the purpose of this metaphor they do. And as part of this mob, the one thing that irks is conflict of interest.
Jamester's, also known as Jamesford's dictionary defines conflict of interest as,
>> Sitting in a meeting and wanting to scratch one's butt and pick one's nose but interested in keeping one's job.
>> Wile.E.Coyote chasing and trying to eat Roadrunner but the success of the show lies in the survival of the prey.
>> Sachin Tendulkar scoring a hundred and India wanting to win.*
>> In bed with a hot girl and Sportscenter is on TV.
>> Getting a weird-ass haircut and wanting to be taken seriously as a fast bowler. (Read Mitch Johnson)
*Love Sachin. Of course India wins when he scores.
So you get the picture. Interest in one thing which does not allow you to fulfill your interest in another thing to the fullest.
Suddenly, Suresh Raina's inclusion in the Indian team is not because of his adept handling of the short pitched delivery but because of Dhoni's involvement with a player management firm.
Ravindra Jadeja's inclusion well...let's concede to that one. MS Dhoni would have played a big part in that.
However, both have somehow managed to justify their selection with performances.
Every team is filled with players who make their way in on merit, favouritism and seniority. Right from club level to the international team, this unspoken quota system exists. As the level increases, perhaps the number of players who walk in on merit increases, but there are players who fill the other seats. As long as they perform, not many questions are asked. It's only when they fail, shit hits the fan. Crass though the analogy may be, it implies that everyone under the fan gets soiled. If one of those players goes down, he'll take a few with him.
In my previous article I mentioned MSD should be allowed to concentrate on the Champions Trophy. I maintain that stand. But once back, he needs to speak out. With the BCCI being quite the despot, he needs to help people believe that at least a few players play only cricket and not other silly games. To quote Arnob, 'India needs an answer.'