Feud at Patna Stadium Delays Ranji Trophy Game as '2 Bihar Teams' Arrive to Play Against Mumbai

Bizarre scenes were on display at Patna’s Moin-ul-Haque stadium before the Ranji Trophy fixture between Bihar and Mumbai, placed in Elite Group B, went underway. The start of the opening day’s play was delayed after two Bihar teams arrived at the stadium to take on Ajinkya Rahane-led Mumbai.

According to The Indian Express, two teams arriving at the venue was an outcome of the in-fighting between two factions of the Bihar Cricket Association (BCA). One unit was named by BCA president Rakesh Tiwary while the other one was picked by association secretary Amit Kumar. After a lengthy altercation on the field, the match could finally begin at 11:00 am IST with the team named by Tiwary taking the field against Mumbai.

Theories for 2 different teams

The report further stated that both Tiwary and Kumar had their parts of the story. The BCA chief claimed that secretary Kumar is currently suspended and thus, the team picked by the latter can’t play.

“We picked the players on merit which is the right team. You see the talent that is coming from Bihar. We have a cricketer (Sakib Hussain), who is picked in the IPL. We have a 12-year-old prodigy making his debut in the game. The other is being picked by the secretary who is suspended, so it can’t be the real team,” Tiwary was quoted as saying.

The BCA president also blamed Aditya Verma, the original petitioner in the 2013 spot-fixing case, for the ruckus at the stadium.

“His only job is to ruin Bihar’s image. He is creating a nuisance because his son was not picked. He tries to put pressure on us, but we have never listened to him as we pick teams according to merit,” Tiwary added.

But Kumar has a completely different explanation for this fiasco. Challenging Tiwary’s claims, he said,

“I won the election, and I am an official secretary of the BCA. You can’t suspend a secretary. Secondly, how can a president select a team? Have you ever seen BCCI president Roger Binny announcing the squad? You will always see the signature of Secretary Jay Shah.”

The BCA statement

Later in the evening, the Bihar Cricket Association (BCA) in a statement said secretary Kumar produced a fake team and attacked an official at the stadium entrance.

“There was a life-threatening attack on BCA’s OSD Manoj Kumar by those involved in the fake team. The miscreants have been identified and action will be taken against them,” the BCA release said.

Verma’s Explanation

Verma, meanwhile, stated it’s a feud between Tiwary and Kumar and he has nothing to do with it.

“This is the fight between both of them. My son has done well in the trials. If my son was picked in one of the squads, is it my fault? He (Tiwary) is after me because I am questioning their corruption, they blame it on me,” Verma told the national daily.