CATEGORY:SPORT(CRICKET) -------------------------- INSIDE GRENADA Monday April 09,2007 (The following article gives an indication of the fallout that is currently taking place in India following the first round knock-out of the Indian cricket team in CWC 2007 here in the Caribbean). The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has ordered a clampdown on personal endorsements for its players, ordering its stars to trim lucrative endorsement deals to a maximum of three as it reviewed the team's inglorious first-round exit from the World Cup. The announcement was just one of several decisions apparently aimed at cutting the players down to size, which may cause uproar among the Indian cricketing ranks. Currently stars like Sachin Tendulkar and Mahendra Singh Dhoni enjoy lucrative deals with as many as 15 brands each. Players will also be required to submit a copy of their contracts to the BCCI and sponsors have been asked not to sign deals with more than two players. While the players refrained from commenting, they have also been asked not to speak to the media, the corporate world was quick to slam the move after it was announced on Saturday. "It is a regressive step," said Shailendra Singh, joint managing director of Percept Holdings, which deals with Sourav Ganguly and Yuvraj Singh. "Restriction on endorsements is the last way to get performance out of a cricketer. "If BCCI would like to link performance with the players, then the sponsors can, in turn, link performance with the BCCI," he told the Times of India. An editorial piece in the same paper said it was apparent that the board was suspicious of some players, especially the senior ones. "Clearly, they feel some of them have become so powerful that they are harming the team and its future," the editorial said. Flashpoint --------------- "Make no mistake, almost every decision has been aimed at breaking them down, at marginalising them. They have taken the war to a flashpoint." It said the players were not in a position to fight back now, but would hit out once they start winning matches again. "The board, then, will have no place to hide," it added. Another editorial in the Hindustan Times said BCCI had absolved itself of all responsibility and put all the blame on the players. "Their solution, to please the lowest common denominator, the fan, is to cut off all avenues from which players make legal money, even cut their match fees, but leave themselves free to do what they want." Youth policy ---------------- The BCCI has signed multi-million dollar deals for television rights, a sponsorship contract and an agreement to hold India-Pakistan ties outside the ICC's Future Tours Programme at off-shore venues. While the players could well be seething inside, Greg Chappell, outgoing coach, is bound to feel vindicated by the board's plans. The former Australian captain had long been disapproving of the ways of the senior players whom he reportedly referred to as "mafia." In keeping with Chappell's policy of promoting youngsters, the board said it would send a "young team" on the tour of Bangladesh led by Rahul Dravid from May 10 to 29. Reprinted from Al Jazeera English - Sport