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ShareMUMBAI: The recent bonhomie at the India nets between coach Greg Chappell and former captain Sourav Ganguly was evidently an illusion. Chappell was the brain behind dumping Ganguly from the team for the third Test against Sri Lanka in Ahmedabad, according to a senior BCCI official.
At the selection committee meeting held after India beat Sri Lanka in Delhi, the coach is said to have been vocal in his criticism of Ganguly, strongly opposing his inclusion in the team. Captain Rahul Dravid was silent as he has been over a period of time on Ganguly.
The idea of dropping Ganguly was first brought up by chairman of selectors Kiran More. Chappell then argued for such a decision. Ganguly backers are now in a minority in the selection committee.
The East Zone representative argued against the move. But the surprise support for Ganguly came from the most unexpected quarters. Bhupinder Singh, the North Zone selector, also opposed the move. But the Central Zone's Sanjay Jagdale backed Chappell and More and the decision was made with support from the South Zone's VB Chandrasekhar.
Mumbai opener Wasim Jaffer, who has been a prolific scorer, was the unanimous choice to replace Ganguly.
But the board official refused to read too much into the decision to bring a Mumbai player in place of the Kolkata pro. "It is nothing to do with the change of guard in the board," the official said.
The committee also decided that the decision should be conveyed to Ganguly by the chairman himself. More agreed. How Ganguly reacted is not known.
As for Ganguly's future, though More said the doors remain open, the committee's mood is unlikely to change by December 22 when the selectors meet to decide the team for the tour of Pakistan.
