Aoba Tanaka 
A bewildering incident occurred at Patna’s Moin-ul-Haq Stadium, where two teams purported to be Bihar’s Ranji Trophy squad clashed in a match against Mumbai. The stadium, previously in the spotlight for its poor infrastructure, witnessed a delayed start due to a dispute between officials of the Bihar Cricket Association (BCA), leading to police intervention.
BCA President Rakesh Tiwary selected the team that arrived first, while Secretary Amit Kumar chose the other team. The disagreement escalated into a scuffle, causing the delayed commencement of the match at 1 pm. Notably, none of the selected squads included named cricketers.
Tiwary, justifying his team selection, claimed merit-based decisions and announced the suspension of Secretary Amit Kumar. He emphasized the talent emerging from Bihar, including IPL-picked cricketer Sakib Hussain and a 12-year-old prodigy making his debut. Tiwary questioned the legitimacy of the other team, asserting it was chosen by the suspended secretary.
In response, Kumar disputed the suspension, highlighting his official position as BCA Secretary. He questioned the president’s role in team selection, drawing a parallel with BCCI President Roger Binny and Secretary Jay Shah’s role in squad announcements.
The BCA later released a statement attributing the chaos to the suspended secretary, accusing him of selecting a fake team and orchestrating an attack on a board official. The statement mentioned a life-threatening attack on BCA’s OSD Manoj Kumar and identified the miscreants.
On the sporting front, Mumbai, batting first, concluded the opening day with 235 for nine. Opener Bhupen Lalwani, Suved Parkar, and Tanush Kotian each contributed fifties. Bihar’s Veer Pratap Singh claimed 4 for 32, while Sakibul Gani and Himanshu Singh secured two wickets each. Despite being the main attraction, veteran batter Ajinkya Rahane remained benched for the match. The unfolding drama sheds light on the administrative challenges and controversies within regional cricket associations.
