Lalit Modi pays tribute to Dalmiya

Observers also warned his death could signal fresh turmoil at the top of the board, with Narayanaswami Srinivasan, the controversial head of the global Cricket Council (ICC), tipped to try and wrest back power. When Dalmiya entered the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), England and Australia ruled the roost.

On Monday, when the 75-year-old Dalmiya was being cremated in Kolkata, the only question that did the rounds was who will succeed a man who was synonymous with Bengal cricket. “You can be rest assured if Pawar fights, CAB and NCC (kind of Dalmiya’s family club) won’t vote for him”, the senior East Zone official told PTI. Whenever there was an issue with the players, he would take special interest to ensure the players’ point of view was factored in the discussions. I have heard stories about how he went out of the way and negotiated with sponsors for the enrichment of the game at the world level. The process wasn’t easy and Dalmiya never gave up.

Not just that, cricket remained largely independent of politics when he was at the helm. The tournament, later known as the Champions Trophy, played an instrumental role behind ICC’s fund raising.

Had he continued as ICC chief… Those were also the days when we earnestly laid the foundations of making Indian cricket the commercial force it is today by breaking the monopoly of Doordarshan as the sole broadcaster of Indian cricket.

It is a rather unfortunate irony that the unabashed negative psyche of the people running cricket in the country is getting exposed less than 24 hours after the demise of a man who introduced his own brand of revolution that virtually had the big guns running for cover. With the much-anticipated South Africa’s tour of India not far away, there is every chance that the focus will as much be off the field as it is on it. He is widely credited with being one of two BCCI officials responsible for India’s emergence as world cricket’s financial powerhouse and the tributes pouring in from across the globe bore witness to the breadth of his relationships. Indian cricket was further strengthened in 1994 when we successfully won the right to host the second World Cup in the subcontinent. Had Dalmiya, along with Inderjit Singh Bindra, not persisted with the cause, an entire generation’s childhood may have taken a different route.

BCB chief Hassan said Dalmiya will be forever remembered for his deeds.

Sourav Ganguly, Chandu Borde and Salim Durrani, among others, spoke glowingly about their memories of the Eden, while Dalmiya, impeccably dressed as always in his safari suit, observed the proceedings quietly from one of the round tables he was seated on. Worked hard for the game of cricket and excelled as an administrator.

“Bearing in mind his ideals and vision, we shall strive to keep up the good work and achieve greater heights.’ said Mr Sood”. Wherever I went, an effort was made to thank me.