New Delhi:
There were early fireworks at a Delhi District Cricket Association (DDCA) Annual General Meeting on Tuesday morning, with executive member Kirti Azad storming out saying he had been insulted and manhandled.
But Chetan Chauhan, another former cricketer and the chairman of the DDCA pitch committee that resigned after the Kotla fiasco, denied that Azad was manhandled.
Tempers were expected to be high with Sunday's Kotla fiasco on top of the agenda. Also, how to get out of a sticky position.
Many, including Virender Sehwag, have already criticised the workings of the DDCA.
The nation had watched in horror as the fifth ODI between India and Sri Lanka was abandoned after 24 overs had been bowled, with the guests complaining that the pitch was dangerous.
The DDCA has received universal flak since then for preparing a poor pitch for an international game. The entire pitch committee quit on Sunday. BJP leader Arun Jaitley is the president of the DDCA and there have been demands that he too resign after the embarrassment.
Sources indicate that the DDCA plans to carry the blame game forward and claim that since it had consulted the now sacked Grounds and Pitches committee chairman Daljit Singh, it is the BCCI that is responsible for Sunday's fiasco.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) will now review Kotla's position as an international venue after going through the report of the match referee Allen Hurst.
In what could be the Delhi cricket lover's nightmare, the ICC match referee's report could put the Kotla ground out of the international scene for a good two years.
The report has labeled the Kotla pitch as "unfit". The "unfit" tag is the worst on a pitch fitness scale of six.
An ICC inspection team that had visited Kotla in November, after an India-Australia ODI, to check on preparedness for the 2011 World Cup had warned that the pitch was poor. Now, Kotla's chances at hosting World Cup matches too look bleak.