The BCCI has come under fire from former Australia cricketer Lisa Sthalekar, who made clear her disappointment at the administrators for not communicating with India woman cricketer Veda Krishnamurthy as she grapples with the loss of her sister and mother due to COVID-19.
Veda, a contracted player with the BCCI, lost her sister last week to COVID-19, two weeks after she lost her mother to the virus. She was also left out of India women's squad for England, announced on Friday.
"Whilst not selecting Veda for the upcoming series may be justified from their point of view. What angers me the most is that as a contracted player, she has not received any communication from BCCI, just to even check how she is coping," Sthalekar tweeted.
Sthalekar also called for a strong players' association in India, like they have in Australia, to look after cricketers.
"A true association should deeply care about the players that play the game, not focus solely on just the game at any cost. So disappointed. As a past player, the ACA [Australian Cricketers' Association] have reached out daily to see how we are and provided all kinds of services," said Sthalekar in her post.
"If there was a need for players' association in India, surely it is now. The stress, anxiety, fear and grief that many players have experienced through this pandemic will take its toll on them as individuals and inadvertently affect the game."
India does have a cricketers' body, Indian Cricketers' Association, formed on the instructions of the Supreme Court of India, but its membership is limited to retired male and female players, as per the court's orders. There is, however, a plan to include active cricketers later.
The Australian cricketer-turned-commentator did a stint as a commentator during the IPL before returning home after the tournament was halted midway.
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