When former batting star Sandeep Patil was handpicked by the bigwigs of the Indian cricket board last September to head the national selection panel, the move was hailed as a surprise weapon to cure Indian cricket’s on-field ills after two crushing series defeats in England (2011) and Australia (2011-12).

Patil was pulled out of his Director role at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore to replace his 1983 World Cup-winning teammate Krishnamachari Srikkanth as chairman of selectors