MCA secretaries manipulated with Mumbai XI in SMAT 2020/21, alleges Lalchand Rajput

In what comes as one of the most damning and explosive revelations in recent times, Lalchand Rajput has stated that secretaries of the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) interfered with the selection of Mumbai’s starting XI in the 2020/21 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Rajput, who was recently relieved of his post after the the CIC was dissolved by MCA office-bearers, insisted that there was immense foul-play with regards to selection of Mumbai’s starting XI in the twenty-over competition and asserted that the selectors - whose hands were tied according to him - would be willing to testify about the same. The 2020/21 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy saw Mumbai finish bottom of their group, below both Andhra and Puducherry.

Post the SMAT 2020/21 debacle, Ramesh Powar was appointed the Mumbai coach and the appointment turned out to be successful as Mumbai lifted the Vijay Hazare Trophy, but Rajput claimed that secretaries of the association, Sanjay Naik and Shahalam Sheikh, wrongly exercised their power by initially ‘finalizing’ Amol Muzumdar as the head coach, despite not having the authority to do so.   

Rajput, who is currently the head coach of the Zimbabwe national cricket team, alleged that the CIC was dissolved as the committee hurt the ego of the MCA secretaries.

“CIC did not accept the above unconstitutional decision of the secretaries which annoyed the secretaries and as a result they decided to dissolve the CIC,” the 59-year-old alleged.