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Former Indian cricket team batter Sanjay Manjrekar weighed in on the 10-point guidelines issued by the BCCI following the humiliating Test series loss against Australia. Manjrekar namedrops legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and said that even he never needed a personal bodyguard while discussing the guideline that will not allow players to have their personal staff on tour. Manjrekar went on to compare Indian cricket with “mainstream Bollywood” and asked for it to be treated as a ‘sport’ only. “It’s almost sort of juvenile that the moment India loses 3-0 against New Zealand and in Australia, these things come up. I wish this was addressed while India was winning. It shouldn’t need a debacle of this kind for certain issues that particularly don’t go well with the team culture,” Manjrekar said on ESPNCricinfo Newsroom.
“This is one of the smaller reasons for what we saw at home against New Zealand and in Australia. This has to be the basic norm. That is how we played in our entire career. We were sharing rooms. Families used to come during the last two weeks of a tour,” he added.
“Sachin Tendulkar was a huge star in our days. He used to be with the team. He didn’t have a personal bodyguard travelling with the team. If you are with the team, there is obviously enough security there,” said Manjrekar.
“The culture that has crept into Indian cricket is a little similar to the culture we see in mainstream Bollywood. I wish after this, cricket and Indian cricket remain what it truly is: it’s sport,” he added.
“I have always felt as a professional, on shorter tours, it is better off with not having family there. However, the argument was made that players play so much cricket and travel around so much, which is a little unfair to players. But that situation is in the past now. Players take periodic breaks from cricket so they get to spend time with their families,” said Manjrekar.
“I am a big believer that players should be on their own. It’s a high-pressure job, a lot of tension, and I don’t think if you are taking your periodic breaks, family is coming on tours, it doesn’t help the team culture and the whole environment,” he added.
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