Sthalekar slams BCCI over handling of Veda Krishnamurthy

Former Australia all-rounder and ICC Hall of Famer Lisa Sthalekar has slammed the BCCI for not keeping in touch with India batter Veda Krishnamurthy after the cricketer lost her mother and sister to Covid-19 in the past few weeks. Veda was consequently not picked in India's squad for any of the formats for the upcoming tour of England, something that Sthalekar feels should have been handled better.

"Whilst not selecting Veda for the upcoming series may be justified from their point of view, what angers me the most is that as a contracted player she has not received any communication from BCCI, just to even check how she is coping," Sthalekar said in a note on her Twitter handle.

There is still time to fix this!! pic.twitter.com/LT3hApMioJ

— Lisa Sthalekar (@sthalekar93) May 15, 2021

She added, "A true association should deeply care about the players that play the game... not focus solely on just the game at any cost. So disappointed."

Sthalekar also reckons that there is a need to have a players' association for the Indian women's team. "As a past player the ACA (Australian Cricketers' Association) have reached out daily to see how we are and provided all kinds of services. If there was a need for a player association in (India) surely it is now," she further wrote.

The 41-year-old Sthalekar, now a commentator, said being looked after has become more important at the moment, with the pandemic wreaking havoc across the world. "The stress, anxiety, fear and grief that many players have experienced through this pandemic will take its toll on them as individuals and inadvertently affect the game," Sthalekar signed off.

India is reeling under a devastating second wave of the pandemic with cases rising by over three lakh everyday and the crisis has been compounded by a shortage of some crucial medicines and oxygen supplies.

(With inputs from PTI)