Pragyan Ojha caught in no-man's land

HYDERABAD: What can a player do when a state association doesn't give him a No Objection Certificate (NOC)? What should a player do if his home association insists on a cooling off period? Does the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have a redressal mechanism in place to address such sticky issues? Or are the players at the mercy of the whims and fancies of the cricket administrators?
Cricket Association of Bengal's (CAB) decision to not give a NOC to former India player and left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha has brought into focus the issue of players' welfare.Last year too Andhra Cricket Association (ACA) had insisted that another former India player Y Venugopala Rao take a one-year cooling off period from First Class cricket. Ironically in both cases a former India player has a big say in the affairs of the respective state association.
The 31-year-old Ojha had left Hyderabad two seasons ago and played for Bengal as a guest player. But this year he wanted to come back to Hyderabad and the 'new' HCA officials were more than willing to have him and AT Rayudu back in the team. In fact, the HCA officials had talked the players into coming back home. Rayudu got his NOC from Vidarbha but Ojha failed to convince the CAB officials.
Sources said CAB president Sourav Ganguly had asked Ojha to stay back for another year. However, Ojha was keen on getting back 'home' and therefore said it was not possible to stay for another year. Thereafter, things went bad to worse as Ojha failed to turn up for the preparatory camp and subsequently Bengal didn't pick him in their squad. The HCA officials too chose to ignore Ojha in their squad as he didn't procure the mandatory NOC.
Caught in no man's land, the former player is at his wit's end. Ojha is still not accessible to the media but sources close to him say that he is really devastated by the turn of events. "How can CAB deny him a NOC when he made it clear to them that he is not keen on playing for Bengal this season? Much before the start of the season, he had told the CAB officials of his non-availability. What is the guarantee that CAB will release him next year too?" sources close the player told TOI on Monday.
"Ojha is maintaining a silence on the issue as he doesn't want to complicate the matter. Things are already bad for him and he doesn't want it to get any worse as he will be the loser in the process," the source added.
"It is made to look as if Ojha is absconding but the fact is that he had lost his grandfather a couple of weeks ago and therefore was not in contact with anyone. However, he had informed the CAB officials of it," the source said.
Sources said Ojha had also written to the BCCI officials including CEO Rahul Johri and also the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators on the matter. However, there has been complete silence on part of the BCCI. "Where does a player go to when injustice is being done to him? Why doesn't the BCCI intervene in the matter and resolve the issue amicably? If an international player is made to suffer like this, what will be the plight of domestic players?
It is no wonder that the Justice (retd) RM Lodha Committee had recommended the formation of a Cricket Players' Association which would look into the players' grievances. But the BCCI has not taken any steps towards the formation of the body.