Hirwani lashes out at selectors

Ace leg-spinner Narendra Hirwani, who created a world record by capturing 16 wickets in a his debut Test match against the West Indies in 1987-88, at Madras, on Monday lashed out at the national cricket selectors, saying they had no answer to offer on his inclusion in the Indian Test team against Australia in 2001 and dramatic removal from it without any rational reason.

''The selectors do not have any criteria for selection and can include anybody and later remove them without providing any chance to prove their prowess," he said.

"Currently there is no selection which picks a player on merit grounds."

Recalling the events which led to his exclusion from the team, Hirwani said he was called for the conditioning camp at Chennai and later given a place in team for the first Test at Mumbai.

"On the evening before the match captain Sourav Ganguly told me that I had to play in the final eleven, but my name did not figure in the final list of players. Even for the next match, at Kolkata, my name did not figure," he said.

He said even coach John Wright had told him, after the team was thrashed in the Mumbai Test, that he would be playing in the second Test.

Later, he played for Board President XI against the touring Australians at Delhi and captured eight wickets in the match.

"'Nobody else can understand my feelings, my pain and my sorrow," he said.

On his comparision with Kumble, he said, "This is not correct, since both of us have different styles. He bowls fastish with lesser spin, while I am an orthodox leggie.

"I am not afraid of speaking the truth while many cricketers keep mum in anticipation of a berth in the team."

Observing that politicians should not become cricket administrators, he said, "Politics in the BCCI has increased as compared to the past. There is no place in the cricket arena for hard and honest players."