Magnanimity ought to have figured in Wankhede golden jubilee celebrations

The forthcoming golden jubilee celebrations of the first Test match held at the Wankhede Stadium promise to be a grand affair replete with novel initiativesThe festivities begin tomorrow with a match between the Association and the Sports Journalistsrsquo Association of Mumbai SJAM and shall reach its zenith on January 19 with a performance by the esteemed musical duo of AjayAtulAlso ReadCoach Murray ready to face Djokovic ireWe First initiativesUnder the stewardship of a novel breed of administrators over the past five years the Association has witnessed the inception of various ideas all emblazoned with the motto We First The inaugural corporate trophy in the aftermath of the pandemic a special league tournament for MCA clubs to commemorate the birth centenary of Madhav Mantri cash prizes from quarterfinals to club teams floodlit local finals and probably the most laudable endeavour of all mdash acknowledging the tireless efforts of its groundstaff this generously supported by Cadbury Mondelez introduction of online registration for players honouring batting legend Sunil Gavaskar with an airconditioned box naming of a stand to honour another cricket legend Dilip Vengsarkar are some of the noteworthy actions of the MCABut during the last five years the MCA somehow missed an opportunity to double the meagre gratispension for former Mumbai players Rs 10000 up to 70 years of age and Rs 20000 to 70 and aboveTysonlike scheme neededWhilst the forthcoming performance by AjayAtul shall undoubtedly prove melodious to the ears of those in attendance an announcement of a scheme akin to the BCAMafatlal Bowling Scheme helmed by the late Frank Tyson which nurtured the talents of illustrious cricketers such as Abey Kuruvilla Paras Mhambrey and many others would doubtless sound more melodious to the ears of the Mumbairsquos cricket lovers That scheme not only produced longserving bowlers it also opened up opportunities for some of them to turn coachesWhile the Association celebrates 50 years of the iconic ground is there any victory for cricket amidst the festivities I wonderJagdish Achrekar was Hon Treasurer of the MCA before the last elections in 2022