Inderjit Singh Bindra: Architect of Modern Indian Cricket

As he is laid to rest, Indian cricket bids farewell to one of its greatest administrators -- a visionary who understood that breaking monopolies and building stadiums were about the same thing: Giving millions of cricket-loving Indians the infrastructure worthy of their passion.

Faisal Shariff pays tribute to Inderjit Singh Bindra who passed into the ages on Sunday.

In the cathedral quiet of a Delhi residence on Sunday evening, Inderjit Singh Bindra took his final breath at 84, closing a remarkable chapter in the annals of Indian cricket administration.

He leaves a lasting legacy: The tangible and financial foundation supporting Indian cricket's global dominance.

To understand Mr. Bindra's legacy is to understand the seismic shift in cricket's power centre from the corridors of Lord's to the subcontinent's beating heart.

Mr. Bindra began his administrative journey in 1975 at a time when Indian cricket was still playing by rules written elsewhere, broadcast by monopolies that treated the game as a Commonwealth gift rather than a global enterprise.

When he retired in 2014 after four decades of service, cricket's economic flight had moved decisively to the Indian subcontinent, and Mr. Bindra was one of the chief masterminds of that transformation.

Mr. Bindra was the visionary who brought the World Cup home. It was 1986, and the dream of hosting the 1987 World Cup on Indian soil seemed to be crumbling what with Australia and England raising security concerns as India-Pakistan tensions spiraled.

Mr. Bindra, then working alongside Mr. N K P Salve and Mr. Jagmohan Dalmiya, saw the diplomatic challenge not as an obstacle but as a problem requiring political finesse.

How I S Bindra shaped World Cricket

In a move that revealed his understanding of power beyond cricket's boundaries, Mr. Bindra suggested that Pakistan's military dictator General Zia-ul-Haq visit India to break the impasse. The gambit worked.

The 1987 Reliance Cup became the first World Cup held outside England, marking the beginning of the end of Western cricket's monopoly over the sport's most prestigious tournament.

That achievement alone would have defined most administrative careers. For Mr. Bindra, it was merely a century on debut.

In 1994, Mr. Bindra did something that forever altered cricket's commercial matrix when he approached the Supreme Court of India to challenge Doordarshan's broadcasting monopoly.

The favourable verdict opened the floodgates for Indian cricket as global companies like ESPN and TWI unleashed market forces that transformed the BCCI into the financial powerhouse it is today.

This wasn't merely about money, though the windfall was staggering. It was about comprehending cricket's true value and taking it to the people who loved it most.

The most fascinating aspect of Mr. Bindra's administrative career was his partnership with Mr. Dalmiya, whom he affectionately called "Jaggu" -- and when it passed through his deep nasal tone, it sounded rather amusing.

If Mr. Bindra was the man with vision and the audacity to dream big, Mr. Dalmiya was the nuts-and-bolts guy who executed those seemingly impossible plans with precision.

Together, they sensed the untapped potential of television rights at a time when others saw only tradition.

They transformed broadcasting deals from administrative formalities into billion-dollar negotiations.

Even when they eventually fell out and Mr. Dalmiya took charge of Indian and world cricket, Mr. Bindra never failed to give "Jaggu" his due credit, demonstrating remarkable magnanimity and grace.

To a young reporter like myself in the late nineties, Mr. Bindra was often a great source for information, startling headlines, and BCCI documents.

Once, for an interview given to Rediff, Mr. Bindra was summoned to a BCCI meeting and questioned about his sensational claim that Indian cricket administrators were involved in match-fixing.

Unlike other BCCI officials or even some players, Mr. Bindra did not deny the interview or the quote -- he owned up to it at the meeting and reiterated his stance. Integrity and fearlessness were in his nature.

Bindra Stadium in Mohali, The most visible monument

The Punjab Cricket Association I S Bindra Stadium in Mohali stands as his most visible monument -- a world-class facility that hosted its first international match in 1993 and has since become one of cricket's finest stages.

But beyond the concrete and floodlights, Mr. Bindra built something more intangible: A model for how regional cricket associations could operate with world-class standards.

For 36 years, from 1978 to 2014, he led the Punjab Cricket Association with a consistency that defied the revolving door of cricket administration.

That longevity came not from political maneuvering but from results -- Test matches, ODIs, IPL games conducted with professionalism that earned Mohali its reputation as one of the subcontinent's premier venues.

Mr. Bindra's career wasn't without its storms. His ability to speak his mind and publicly denounce any wrong doing hurt his image and credibility at times.

The controversial interview on CNN naming an Indian legend as a match fixer created quite a media storm.

His support for Lalit Modi during the Shashi Tharoor crisis and later during the IPL controversies, his backing of Haroon Lorgat for Cricket South Africa's CEO position -- these decisions earned him criticism and strained relationships within cricket's establishment.

But they also revealed something essential about his character: He possessed the courage of his convictions, even when unpopular.

In his own words, written in a 2017 blog, he called such attacks 'badges of honour', asserting they only strengthened him as an administrator.

It was the perspective of a man who had spent decades robbing what he called the 'vultures' of cricket governance of their next meal -- administrators who prioritized personal gain over the sport's integrity.

Before becoming cricket's architect, Mr. Bindra served as special secretary to then President Giani Zail Singh, bringing a bureaucrat's precision and a diplomat's skill to cricket administration.

That dual expertise -- understanding both governmental machinery and international relations -- made him uniquely effective in an era when cricket increasingly required political acumen alongside sporting knowledge.

As principal advisor to then ICC president Sharad Pawar from 2010 to 2012, Mr. Bindra extended his influence across the full spectrum of global cricket governance -- from the Punjab Cricket Association to the BCCI to the ICC itself.

Few administrators have operated with such consistent impact across all three levels.

The numbers tell part of the story: BCCI president from 1993 to 1996, PCA president for 36 years, instrumental in bringing the 1987 and 1996 World Cups to the subcontinent, advisor to the formation of the IPL.

Custodian of Indian crickets rise to global dominance

The IPL would not have been the tournament it went on to become if it were not for the backing and inputs from Mr. Bindra.

His moral compass and ability to call out, even his closest of colleagues, if a decision didn't pass cricket's ethical filter was exemplary.

Take, for example, the time when he warned cricketers against giving up playing for the country for the IPL.

He was against players giving up their central contracts to participate in the IPL, saying the Twenty20 event would not accept any rebel.

Also when he sided with reason and opposed U19 players being auctioned at the IPL despite the hype of the U19 Indian team's success.

When the Mohali stadium was renamed in his honour in 2015, it recognised not just years of service but the fundamental transformation of how cricket operates in India.

Every broadcast deal the BCCI signs, every World Cup match played in the subcontinent, every piece of infrastructure that makes India cricket's economic centre -- these bear Mr. Bindra's fingerprints.

Inderjit Singh Bindra's passing comes at a time when Indian cricket enjoys unchallenged global influence thanks to its financial muscle.

That this transformation feels inevitable in hindsight is perhaps the highest tribute to those who made it possible.

They saw the future before it arrived and built the infrastructure to support it.

The stadium in Mohali will continue bearing his name, matches will be played under lights he helped install, broadcast deals will generate revenue through markets he helped open, and future administrators will operate within structures he helped create.

These are the monuments that matter -- not made of marble or bronze, but living systems that continue serving the sport he loved.

He spent four decades transforming Indian cricket from a participant in a global game to its dominant force.

As he is laid to rest, Indian cricket bids farewell to one of its greatest administrators -- a visionary who understood that breaking monopolies and building stadiums were about the same thing: Giving millions of cricket-loving Indians the infrastructure worthy of their passion.

Rest in peace, Sir. The game you helped build plays on.

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff