When Pawar handcuffs Dravid

By John Cheeran
How rotten things are in Indian cricket was evident as the story of Sourav Ganguly's inclusion for the Lahore Test emerged through whispers.
Ganguly's inclusion in the side defies logic.
Where will he bat?
There is no room for him in the middle order. Rahul Dravid has no option but ask Ganguly to open the innings.
He has been pushed into the side at the cost of specialist openers Gautam Gambhir and Wasim Jaffer. The point is simple and it bears no repetition.
Team India skipper Rahul Dravid does not want Sourav Ganguly in the side. Nor does coach Greg Chappell. Theycan't find a place for Ganguly in the side.
But they were overruled by power brokers in the Indian cricket board.
An AFP report says that team sources said in Lahore that Sourav Ganguly was included in the Indian team due to pressure from cricket board chiefs.
Coach Greg Chappell and captain Rahul Dravid did not want Ganguly to open the innings and could not fit him in the middle-order either without disturbing a trusted combination.
But team manager Raj Singh Dungarpur, under instructions from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), is understood to have spoken to Chappell and urged him to field the experienced Ganguly for the match.
"The manager was asked to convince Chappell to play Ganguly," the source said, declining to reveal which BCCI official wanted the former captain in. "All I can say is there was pressure from the top to include Ganguly because of his vast experience. "
If this is a reflection of the clout a listless and out of form Ganguly can wield with the man who defeated his godfather Jagmohan Dalmiya, things are terribly, terribly wrong with Indian cricket.
And the incident has proved that what a liar Sharad Pawar can be.
He has repeatedly said that he will not interfere in selection matters. Everyone realised the worth of his words as national selectors were coerced into bringing Ganguly back in the side.
Again, Pawar has joined the team management by foisting Ganguly on Team India.
Now you know how Ganguly managed to cling onto the Indian team, when Dalmiya ruled the roost, in the last five years.
If India lose this series against Pakistan, don't blame skipper Dravid.
How can he implement his vision for success when Indian board handcuffs skipper during the selection of the side?
How can any skipper plan for success when a dirty politician like Ganguly sow the seeds of dissent in the side?