Showcause to cricketers distracting from main issues: Akram

New Delhi:

Instead of indulging in trivialities and slapping showcause notice on players for a pub brawl, BCCI should address the bigger issues plaguing Indian cricket, said former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram.

After India's dismal show in the recent World Twenty20, some of the players got involved in a pub brawl in St Lucia, which prompted the BCCI to serve show cause notice to them.

Akram said BCCI should not miss the wood for the trees and address the bigger issues first.

"Soul-searching is a must if a cricket nation has to dissect failures. But this does not mean throwing mud at each other or trying to digress from the central issues afflicting the game," said Akram.

"For example, trying to find out what happened in a pub in St Lucia is much lesser an issue than (having) unfit players or players hiding injuries. Under the circumstances, BCCI slapping showcause notices to a mix of senior and junior players is just beating around the bush," Akram wrote in his column for a sports website.

India coach Gary Kirsten was furious after the team's flop show in the Caribbeans where he told them that at 42, he himself was fitter then some of them.

According to Kirsten, eight players were overweight and three were unfit for any form of cricket.

Akram was surprised that BCCI chose to play up the pub brawl while ignoring the bigger issues.

"Let's assume the players were out for some fun and picked up a brawl. Had India won the World Cup, this issue would have never surfaced. So why is the BCCI making a mountain of a molehill?

"I always thought the BCCI was better (than PCB) in terms of decision making and governance. There are bigger issues to address. It's no point diverting attention by highlighting a pub brawl," Akram said.

The former Pakistan paceman, however, hailed Suresh Raina's appointment as India captain for the Zimbabwe tour and the inclusion of Ashok Dinda, whom he trained during IPL in the Kolkata Knight Riders team, in the team.