He may be the toast of the cricketing community now following the explosive revelation that he would be vying for world cricket’s most valuable post in the years to come. But Sourav Ganguly himself knows better than anybody else that his biggest challenge will be to get past the very first hurdle in his bid for entering into active cricket politics.

To be eligible for contesting for the BCCI president’s post, Ganguly will have to fulfill a clutch of criteria, which begin with getting elected into any BCCI-affiliated state association. Following that, Ganguly will then have to ensure that he attends at least two AGMs of the BCCI, with representation from any affiliated state body. And as Ganguly warily prepares to enter the power corridors of the CAB, he knows well that at this stage, he is nowhere near the mark when it comes to the numbers game.

The complex Maidan electorate comprises 121 votes, and despite his stature in world cricket, Ganguly has absolutely no standing at all when it comes to choosing between him and current CAB president Jagmohan Dalmiya.

The 121-vote pie comprises votes from 37 first-division clubs, 54 second-division, 18 district units, 8 universities and a vote from the West Bengal Office Sports Federation. Now, as things stand, the Ganguly faction in the Maidan holds sway over 35 to 40 voting units, while the Dalmiya camp has the confidence of the majority of the pie. This analysis comes straight from an influential high-up in the CAB administration. “There is no way that Ganguly’s vote share will go beyond the 40-mark if he contests this year, which is a hypothetical assessment. That’s the final answer, and the result simply can’t be any different. At this stage, Dalmiya will be a clear winner if they take each other on in the polls this month-end,” the reliable source told The Indian Express.

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