Gautam Gambhir lashes out at cricket administrators for allowing Mohammad Azharuddin to ring Eden bell

Former India opener Gautam Gambhir on Monday slammed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Committee of Administrators (CoA) and the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) for allowing Mohammad Azharuddin to ring the bell at the Eden Gardens Stadium in Kolkata during the first Twenty20 match between India and West Indies.

Azharuddin had been accused in a match-fixing scandal that rocked Indian cricket in the early 2000 and was subsequently banned for life by the BCCI and the International Cricket Council (ICC). He was, however, later acquitted of such claims by a Hyderabad court and his ban was revoked in 2012.

“India may have won today at Eden but I am sorry @bcci, CoA &CAB lost. Looks like the No Tolerance Policy against Corrupt takes a leave on Sundays! I know he was allowed to contest HCA polls but then this is shocking….The bell is ringing, hope the powers that be are listening,” tweeted Gambhir on his social media account.

India may have won today at Eden but I am sorry @bcci, CoA &CAB lost. Looks like the No Tolerance Policy against Corrupt takes a leave on Sundays! I know he was allowed to contest HCA polls but then this is shocking….The bell is ringing, hope the powers that be are listening. pic.twitter.com/0HKbp2Bs9r

— Gautam Gambhir (@GautamGambhir) November 4, 2018

Meanwhile, the bell ringing ritual was introduced by former Indian skipper and current CAB president Sourav Ganguly during an India-New Zealand Test match at the Eden Gardens in 2016.

Before the start of a match or a Day’s play (for Test cricket) the bell is rung by any former cricketer or administrator to commence the start of action at the ground in Kolkata.

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