India enjoys a strong position in the world of cricket. India’s dominance in the sport was established by multiple generations of successful and inspiring cricketers. However, the period of the late 1990s and early 2000s was the downfall of the ‘Men in Blue’ with the rise of the infamous match-fixing scandal, which led to a ban on Mohamad Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja. During this phase, one of the most promising cricketers of team India, Gyanendra Pandey, left the sport to start his life afresh.
Gyanendra Pandey was among a few cricketers who were tried and tested during the time when Indian cricket was desperately looking for new superstars. However, several cricketers were tried and tested then, and their careers depended on a single performance.
Indian cricketers like Tinu Yohannan, Iqbal Abdullah, Ajay Ratra, etc managed to feature in a handful of games. However, they were later dropped, and they never managed to return to the field. In India’s desperate hunt for superstars, cricketer Gyanendra Pandey was another namelost during the phase.
Who is Gyanendra Pandey?
Gyanendra Pandey played cricket as a left-arm spinner and impressed selectors as a capable batter. Later, he became a prominent figure for Uttar Pradesh in the Indian domestic circuit. He also earned 254 wickets from 199 games held in the First Class and List A cricket. In 97 Ranji Trophy matches, he played, Gyanendra Pandey entered the national championships, and made his debut in the 1999 Pepsi Cup tri-series.
What went wrong for Gyanendra Pandey?
Gyanendra Pandey’s career ended abruptly just after two ODIs as he went back to playing for Uttar Pradesh. He tried his luck for another six years before retiring from the sport. Now, the former Indian cricket works as a PR agent with State Bank of India.
After playing two ODIs, Pandey missed the chance of playing 1999 Test series between India and New Zealand. Lack of support and confidence by then-BCCI secretary, Jaywant Lele, can be seen as a major reason behind Pandy’s dismissal from the ODI, reported Hindustan Times, citing Pandey’s interview with Lallantop.
Commenting on the same, Pandey said, “Mr. Lele should have thought about what he said. He should have seen my performance. He was an umpire as well. I get it; it was my fault. I didn’t know the tricks; didn’t understand how these thing work. I couldn’t handle it and hence, got defamed. Even the media did not print my side of the story. No one came to ask me anything. They only contacted the top brass.”