‘Obviously an afterthought’ – Farokh Engineer slams ECB over Pataudi medal announcement

Former India cricketer Farokh Engineer expressed disappointment over the England and Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB) handling of the renaming of the England-India Test series and the introduction of a new winner’s medal named after the late Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi.

The Pataudi Trophy had been instituted for the India-England Test series in 2007, but ahead of the ongoing five-match series, the ECB renamed it as the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, which drew mixed reactions from the cricketing fraternity.

“Well Tiger Pataudi was a great friend of mine. Great colleague of mine. We played a lot of Test cricket. Great heritage, great family. I was most happy when the trophy was named after him back in 2007,” Engineer said.

“On one hand I was very disappointed that the Pataudi name was removed, I would love Tiger’s name to go on but instead powers that be decided with Anderson and Sachin who are legends of the game. It (introducing Pataudi medal) was obviously an afterthought, they should have announced it in the beginning that would have more credibility but at least they have done something. Common sense has prevailed and I hope the Pataudi name always remains,” Engineer added.

Engineer acknowledged that naming the medal after Sachin Tendulkar and James Anderson is justified but it remains a debatable decision. He expressed hope that the Pataudi family, including Sharmila Tagore and Saif Ali Khan, would be invited to present the medal at this time.

“The achievements of Tendulkar and Anderson can’t be argued against. There are two sides to the story. They have named the medal after Pataudis which is a very thoughtful thing. That must be a second choice to appease a lot of Pataudi supporters of which I am one, but you can’t blame them for naming the trophy after Sachin and Anderson,” Engineer said.

“The whole issue is debatable but they have kept the name. I hope they invite Sharmila Tagore (Mansur’s wife) and his son Saif Ali Khan to present the medal. Last series they didn’t do that. Fingers were pointed at the ECB for that. Hopefully they give them due credit,” he concluded.

Disclaimer: The information presented in this news article is based on the author’s insights, analysis, and perspective. Readers are encouraged to evaluate the details thoughtfully and draw their own conclusions.